Meet Our Team

Find Your Child’s Therapsist Today…

While every member of the Modern Parenting Solutions team is passionate about helping kids, teens, and young adults overcome their unique challenges, we each have our own individual populations and specialties with which we work. “Meet” us below by reading over our bios and learning how we can help you and your child.

Clinical Team

Dr. Becca Ballinger

Child Psychologist/Practice Owner

POPULATION: Teens, Young Adults, and Parent Coaching

SPECIALTY: When kids, teens, and young adults struggle with tough issues like anxiety, depression, behavioral issues, social difficulties, and/or academic issues, it could seem overwhelming when trying to find help for them. My goal was to create a one-stop-shop where families could go to get the help they needed – whether it was through mental health therapy, online parenting courses, or free parenting educational resources. As such, I created Modern Parenting Solutions – a place staffed with talented mental health therapists ready to help your family or child overcome whatever difficulty lies in their path. We can help.

Parenting a struggling teenager can leave you feeling lonely & helpless – but it doesn’t have to be. For years, I’ve worked with teens who struggle with anxiety, depression, ADHD, defiance, substance use, & much more…& I’ve learned that a little investment in therapy can go a long way in helping them make tough changes that lead to a successful future. Over time, I’ve developed strategies that allow me to quickly connect with teens, help them break through the systems & defenses that just don’t work for them anymore, & help them create new ways of relating to their world that increases their healthy connection to people & life.

As a child psychologist & Modern Parenting Expert, I have written extensively on Modern Parenting topics for large publications such as The Huffington Post, Today Parenting, and Psychology Today. This focus on the needs of the Modern Family permeates the work that we do at Modern Parenting Solutions, and this allows us to see great success with our families.

 

Catherine Kelly

Site Supervisor/Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist & Registered Play Therapist

POPULATION: Ages 3-12

SPECIALTY: Catherine specializes in working with kids who seem to have been given a negative label. Many of the parents of her child or teen patients tell her that “everyone” recommends that the parent should be providing more discipline or more structure, but usually these parents know that their child just needs help adjusting to this pandemic – and to life.

Fortunately, Catherine knows how to work with kids who seem to be need help adjusting to their unique life circumstances. She likes to help her young people feel confident, happy, and resilient.

She utilizes a range of treatment modalities such as Play Therapy, attachment-based therapy, Emotionally-Focused Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) to assist kids as young as 3 years old gain better control over their emotions and behavior so that they can live their lives to their fullest potential. Her warm and inviting personality allows her to connect easily with her clients so that they feel motivated and safe to change their behavior.

Priya Agarwal

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Registered Play Therapist

POPULATION: Ages 3-11

SPECIALTY: Tired of your child’s teacher complaining about your young child? Priya’s specialty is using play therapy techniques to gently, but expertly, teach your child how to better manage their impulsive behaviors and intense emotions so that you STOP getting complaints and START getting compliments from their teacher!

Priya believes that many young kids aren’t given the opportunity to SHINE in school due to their behavior or emotions, so her goal is to reinforce effective coping skills, highlight natural strengths and abilities,  and reinforce positive social skills – all of which will bring about positive changes for your child.

Priya comes to MPS with a ton of experience working with kids with ADHD, Oppositional Defiance Disorder, Separation Anxiety, Reactive-Attachment Disorder, etc. Her calm, knowledgeable, and playful personality helps her connect quickly with her young patients, while also allowing parents to feel confident that their child is in the right hands.

Priya is new to MPS so call now to get an appointment with her today!

Sheena Thompson

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist

POPULATION: Ages 13 – 25

SPECIALTY: As a parent, it’s so hard to watch your teen or young adult struggle. You know they’re capable of so much, yet they seem to be sidelined by lack of energy, confusion about who they are, and an inability to see a bright future for themselves.

Sheena enjoys working with teens and young adults who struggle with making and completing goals for themselves. She is skilled with helping young adults and teens who feel “stuck” – they know they’re capable of so much, but they just don’t know where to start in making the life of their dreams happen. She knows how to work with young people so that they gain much needed direction and confidence to allow them to soar!

Sheena specializes in tailoring her treatment plans and interventions to meet the unique needs of her individual clients. She is often integrating art, music, worksheets, and other engaging activities into her sessions so that her young clients gain the most out of their sessions. 

 

Yalittza Reyna

Licensed Clinical Social Worker

POPULATION: Ages 13 – 25

Bilingual (English/Spanish)

SPECIALTY: Yalittza joins Modern Parenting Solutions with a wealth of experience in working with hard-to-treat adolescents and young adults.

She knows that getting some teens and young adults to admit that they need help isn’t always easy, so she’s developed the right amount of patience, humor, and insight to get through to this age group. Because she has a special place in her heart for teens and young adults, her clients find it easy to trust her and to talk about difficult topics such as addiction, trauma, self-esteem issues, depression, anxiety, difficulty with peers/school/parents, etc. 

Yalittza matches her therapeutic technique to the specific needs of each individual client. In this way, she is able to get to the root of the issue with each client as quickly as possible. She is well versed in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Family Systems Therapy, and Motivational Interviewing.

Administrative Team

Lisa Shults

Practice Manager

Lisa is our warm and friendly Super Star in our office who keeps everything running smoothly.

You will likely talk with her on the phone when making an appointment or talking about insurance information, and she is often in our office welcoming you before your appointment. 

We couldn’t run our office so smoothly without her!

Want to Schedule a Session? Enter Your Name and Phone Number Below and an Intake Coordinator Will Call You Back.

IMPORTANT: For all emergencies, please DO NOT use email. Call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.

Are you a licensed LCSW, LMFT, PsyD, or PhD? Want to join our team? Click the button below to find out more info on how to apply.

DISCLAIMER

The resources presented on the Modern Parenting Solutions website are not intended to replace therapy – they are for reference and educational purposes only. As every family is individual and unique in their strengths and weaknesses, the resources and advice supplied on this website are general in nature and should never replace any medical or psychological services that you may be currently engaged in. Please contact a mental health professional if you have any questions.

If you are experiencing an emergency, please call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.

Unless otherwise specified, all content, ideas, and images on this site were created by and for Modern Parenting Solutions. You are welcome to use content from this blog, but please give credit to the original source.