Lora L. Smalley

I started working in mental health in the 90's while still an undergraduate student. From the first job people told me I was great with trauma victims and substance abuse and encouraged me to become a clinician. I studied and received my masters in marriage and family therapy learning how systems injure and can heal us. I then went on to specialize in trauma and other disorders often seen with it including depression, substance abuse, anxiety, disassociation and high risk behaviors. I worked for many years in a variety of different settings from schools, to court and community based agencies. Prior to opening my private practice I worked for 12 years in a integrated care model with medical and behavioral health working together to meet patients needs. I am presently working out of a private medical providers office as I continue to want to coordinate care if possible to help heal all aspects of those who need my services. I come from a military family, am married to a veteran and have numerous family members who have served in many different conflicts. I have also worked as a contractor with the Army overseas often working with service members who had been in theater just weeks before. I in addition to this I worked for the Veterans and Family Services program serving not just veterans and active duty but Guard and Reserve members around the state. I worked with pre and post deployment Yellow Ribbon weekends and with the Veterans Choice program. I have received training in the top PTSD or trauma based treatments including: EMDR plus specialized training in working with veterans, disassociation, pain and other areas, I am trained in Seeking Safety, Stress Inoculation Training, Cognitive Processing Therapy, Prolonged exposure, S.T.A.I.R., ARC model, and Emotion Freedom Technique. In addition to this I also have advanced training in Motivational Interviewing, was trained by the Matrix Institute in the Matrix model and several 12 step based substance abuse treatment models. Why so many? Because I believe in using evidence or researched based approaches that have a history of success to help those who seek services. I am also aware that there is not a one size fits all approach and each individual is just that an individual.