Chelsea Hawkins, PhD
Licensed Psychologist
Dr. Chelsea Hawkins has over a decade of diverse experience with clients spanning from childhood through young adulthood with a variety of presenting concerns. Her training experiences over the years have been in both school and community counseling settings and have encompassed a variety of evidence-based approaches including Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), Solution-Focused Therapy (SFT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT).
Chelsea has a genuine and casual vibe to her therapeutic style. Chelsea tends to approach her work from a CBT lens, but also believes that therapy shouldn’t be a one-size-fits-all kind of thing. She values mindfulness-based techniques and incorporates them when appropriate, while acknowledging they may not resonate with every client. Chelsea strives to cultivate a safe space for all to allow room for exploration, growth, and change. She believes in the power of a strong working therapeutic relationship.
Despite the fact that she may not always be up to date on the latest lingo, she does tend to fare well with clientele who are resistant to therapy. Chelsea specializes in working with young adults, teens, and preteens with anxiety, depression, OCD, life transitions, and LGBTQ related struggles. She also frequently supports families navigating school avoidance, sleep struggles, emotional regulation difficulties, and day-to-day behavioral challenges, and offers parent coaching to help caregivers feel more confident and supported.
Some additional presenting concerns Chelsea can help with:
- Anxiety, overthinking, or difficulty “shutting off” thoughts
- OCD (intrusive thoughts, compulsions, reassurance-seeking) with clients of all ages
- Perfectionism, procrastination, or high academic pressure
- Social stress, friendship challenges, or peer conflict
In addition to therapy, Chelsea conducts comprehensive psychoeducational evaluations for children ages 6 and up. These evaluations can assess for a variety of presenting concerns such as academic concerns/Specific Learning Disabilities (including dyslexia), ADHD, executive functioning difficulties, and anxiety, and are designed to provide clear, practical recommendations to support both families and teaching teams to best guide appropriate interventions.
Chelsea graduated from the University at Buffalo with her doctorate in Combined Counseling Psychology/School Psychology in 2023. Prior to this, she graduated with her master’s in Clinical and Counseling Psychology from William Paterson University and with her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Stockton University (formerly Richard Stockton College of New Jersey).
In her free time, Chelsea enjoys spending time with her family and spending time in nature. She loves playing with her dog and cats, listening to audiobooks or podcasts, and *attempting* to keep her plants alive!