About
Welcome. I am a licensed clinical social worker (LCSWA) who provides psychotherapy services to adult individuals and groups in the Triangle area. I hold a Master of Social Work from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Prior to beginning my private practice, I provided mental health services to refugees who were recently resettled in the Triangle, trained and practiced at UNC’s Department of Psychology Community Clinic, and worked with patients with eating disorders at the residential, partial hospitalization, and intensive outpatient level.
I have extensive experience with insight-oriented meditation practices, with a special interest in Insight Dialogue, an interpersonal meditation practice. I maintain a regular mindfulness and yoga practice and often integrate mindfulness in sessions with clients. I also facilitate mindfulness and yoga classes and retreats. My interest in meditation and yoga comes from the greater sense of self-awareness and emotion regulation observed in my own life as well as significant research evidence supporting its benefits.
I approach my work with humility as a white, queer-identified, cis woman who is committed to creating a more just and liberated environment for all beings. Before becoming a therapist, I worked as an ESL teacher, independent bookseller, freelance writer, mindfulness teacher, and in academic libraries. Away from work, I spend time in nature, read in my hammock, write in my journal, practice different styles of joyful body movement, half-follow recipes, give time to causes I support, spend time with my people, and study relaxation techniques from my cat, Archie.
Therapy
I offer psychotherapy for adults experiencing a variety of stressors, mental health challenges, and those seeking life enhancement. I work with people to improve mood, lower distress, understand and process emotions, repair relationships with food and their bodies, heal from trauma, strengthen relationships, find direction, and build vitality. Some come to therapy with a set of discrete problems they hope to resolve. Others may seek it out as a step on the path of self-exploration and even liberation. Regardless of your starting point, we’ll move forward together with your needs in mind.
Because no two relationships are the same, my approach is tailored to each client. We will collaboratively create an approach that works for you and define your goals for therapy. My therapeutic orientation is transtheoretical and integrative, meaning that I pull from a number of theories and traditions to serve the whole person in front of me. In sessions, I draw from what I’ve learned as a yoga and mindfulness teacher alongside training in evidence-based therapies for anxiety, depression, trauma, and eating disorders.
My style is warm, perceptive, and flexible. I listen deeply and consider the relationship between therapist and client to be one of the most important elements for growth. Clients tell me that I am transparent, attuned, funny, and approachable. We’ll start together by identifying and amplifying your individual strengths. From there, we explore ways to grow and thrive. In sessions, we will work to increase your ability to connect with thoughts, emotions, and your body at the same time.
We may practice concrete skills to lower the distress that has brought you to therapy and incorporate more relational work to shed light on patterns that can create or exacerbate suffering. I find that the combination of building skills and increasing awareness of – and compassion for – how one’s past shows up in the present is empowering for most clients. It also allows the benefits of therapy to take root beyond our time together. I can also take a more direct and active approach that invites you to try new ways of thinking, acting, and feeling while we’re in session together.
At its core, therapy involves a willingness to look inward to find freedom alongside another person who is there to hold, nudge, and guide as needed. It is my true honor to co-create a space where a client feels open enough to touch both pain and joy in therapy. Transformation happens when people can access and fortify the parts of themselves that are innately primed for healing. Together, we can help you flourish.
Clinical Approach
I consider a secure, respectful, and trusting relationship between client and therapist a key ingredient for the bravery needed to heal and transform. I have studied and trained in the following models:
- Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP) – Certified Level 1
- Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP)
- Emotionally-Focused Therapy for Individuals and Couples (EFT)
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Motivational Interviewing (MI)
Note: If you have questions about any of these modalities, I am happy to talk to you about them in more depth.
My areas of clinical interest and experience include but are not limited to:
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Eating disorders (bulimia, binge eating, emotional eating) and body image concerns
- Family issues (difficulty connecting with family, growing a family, infertility, new parenthood)
- Issues related to emerging adulthood (ages 18-30)
- History of trauma (discrete events, PTSD, complex PTSD, early childhood trauma, immigration and resettlement)
- Emotional awareness and regulation
- Life transitions and adjustment challenges
- Identity exploration (gender, sexuality, sense of self, race, etc.)
- Career and education exploration
- Personal growth
- Difficulty with intimate relationships or a desire to improve communication
- Needs specific to the LGBTQQIA+ community
I practice under the supervision of Tyler Beach, MSW, LCSW. I engage in AEDP supervision with Melissa Maxwell, MSW, LCSW.
Therapeutic Values
It is my privilege to be a part of Whole Being Therapy. As a collective, we share values around serving the LGBTQQIA+ community and providing accessible services. My approach is HAES-aligned (Health At Every Size), sex-positive, harm reduction, and queer- and trans-affirming. I engage in my own anti-racism and anti-oppression work. I recognize the dialectic that it is not the role of the client to educate a clinician about your culture, nor should a therapist make assumptions about your experiences. I also consider the effects of trauma from specific events, early life experiences, intergenerational trauma, and systemic oppression with clients. I have experience working with people of all sexual orientations, all gender identities and expressions, people of color, immigrants and refugees, people who practice monogamy and non-monogamy, people from varying class backgrounds, and people with different physical abilities. I especially take joy in serving the needs of LGBTQQIA+ people and their allies.
Appointments & Fees
** I currently conduct all sessions via secure teletherapy due to the COVID-19 pandemic. I will gradually return to seeing clients in-person when it is safer to do so. **
I see clients Monday through Thursday with limited evening availability.
I offer a free 15-minute phone consultation to see if we may be a good fit prior to our first session. Please email me at katrinapaigemartin@gmail.com to arrange a time to talk or call me at 919-407-3459.
Fees
Initial evaluation, 90 minutes – $190
60-minute session – $130
45-minute session – $100
Longer or shorter sessions can be arranged and prorated at the hourly fee. Payment is expected at the time of service rendered unless other arrangements have been made. I accept cash, check, Venmo, and credit cards. I request at least 24 hours notice for rescheduling or cancelling appointments. Failure to provide such notice results in a charge of the appointment fee.
Sliding scale: I reserve one quarter to one half of my caseload for sliding scale clients. We will determine an appropriate rate together. If my sliding scale spots are full, I can provide you with a list of clinicians who may offer affordable care.
Insurance: I am currently out-of-network with all insurance providers. However, I am happy to help you navigate the process of applying for partial reimbursement from your provider for out-of-network coverage. Prior to our first session, I recommend that you call to verify the percentage of reimbursement and whether you have a deductible that must be met before any reimbursement occurs. Contact me with questions as needed!
Classes, Groups, & Events
As a mindfulness & yoga teacher, I periodically offer multi-week courses and one-off retreats. I am certified to teach Koru Mindfulness, a four-week evidence-based mindfulness curriculum for emerging adults.
Current offerings
Chapel Hill Eating Disorder Support Group
(currently on a wait list)
I co-facilitate a free support group for adults who identify as being in recovery from an eating disorder on Thursday evenings. The group has three rotating facilitators: me, Sara Riggs (LCSW), and Jenna Ferguson (LCSWA). Email me if you’d like to join the waitlist for the virtual group.
Chronic Illness & Chronic Pain Support Group
Alongside Nina Plocek, LCSWA, I co-facilitate a support group for adults who live with chronic illness or chronic pain. Contact me for more information. katrinapaigemartin@gmail.com
Contact
It takes courage to reach out, especially when things feel like they may never change. With this step, you’re already lighting your way forward.
I do my best to respond to initial contact via phone or email within 2 business days.
You can reach me via email at katrinapaigemartin@gmail.com or call at 919-407-3459.
I offer a free 10-15-minute phone consultation to those who’d like to see if we’re a good match before our first appointment. If I am full or not the right therapist for you, I’m happy to connect you with other providers in the area who may be a better fit.
Here is a pamphlet with questions to ask a new therapist as a person living on the margins. I am happy to answer any questions you have as honestly as possible.