BIO/THEORETICAL ORIENTATION
Education/Bio:
Dr. Bell-Pringle grew up in Omaha, NE before moving to Tempe, AZ to attend Arizona State University. She graduated from Arizona State University with a B.A. degree in Psychology and then applied to graduate programs in her field while working at a group home for children and adolescents who had behavioral disorders. Next, Dr. Bell-Pringle entered the Clinical Psychology Program at Georgia State University (GSU) in Atlanta, GA where she earned her M.A. and Ph.D. During her graduate training, she worked in several different clinical settings (e.g., hospital adult inpatient units, long-term residential care for children and adolescents, college counseling centers), which allowed her to develop a broad range of skills and specialization areas such as couples therapy, group therapy, anxiety disorders, men's issues, substance abuse, and adolescent psychotherapy. In addition, Dr. Bell-Pringle was an instructor at GSU as a doctoral student, teaching 6 sections of Introductory Psychology and 3 sections of Growth and Human Potential.
After graduating with her doctoral degree, Dr. Bell-Pringle was hired as a Clinical Assistant Professor at GSU. She then worked in this capacity for several years at the GSU Counseling Center, conducting psychotherapy, supervising clinicians in training, teaching courses and seminars, and giving outreach workshops. In her role as a faculty member at GSU's Counseling Center, Dr. Bell-Pringle coordinated the Alcohol and Drug Treatment Program, Co-Coordinated the Group Psychotherapy Program, and taught seminars on Ethics, Group Therapy, and Substance Abuse Treatment. Dr. Bell-Pringle also maintained a part-time private practice during some of her tenure at GSU.
Dr. Bell-Pringle left GSU to focus on her clinical private practice full time, but still is frequently invited to give guest lectures to clinicians in training at the GSU and Georgia Tech Counseling Centers. Because she resides in Atlanta, GA where she completed her graduate training, Dr. Bell-Pringle remains connected to a large web of other mental health professionals in the area. One of the ways she keeps in touch with other therapists is by offering continuing education workshops for professional therapists in the areas of ethics, supervision, multicultural issues, couples therapy, and substance abuse treatment.
Theoretical Orientation:
As an eclectic therapist, I have a depth of training and experience in several types of psychotherapies and draw upon all of these at various times with different clients. My theoretical orientation is a layering of many therapeutic approaches. Depending on what a particular client is struggling with, his/her ability to cope with emotional intensity, and the person's specific contexts, I will interact with that person in the most therapeutic way based on all of the knowledge at my disposal.
Theories supporting major life changes:
Humanistic/Existential
Multicultural
Gestalt
Object Relations
-Use of Self Model
Contextual Family Therapy
Theories supporting immediate change with specific symptoms:
Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Therapy
Note: Cognitive Therapy and Behavioral Therapy are two very different theories that require in-depth training. If a therapist identifies his/her orientation as "Cognitive-Behavioral," chances are that this person has training in Cognitive Therapy, but may not be skilled or trained in Behavioral Therapy.
Because each of these therapeutic approaches is informed by a vast body of knowledge, research, and experience, it would take pages and pages to explain each one. However, if you would like to read a brief description of these theories, go to:
http://www.answers.com/psychotherapy
and search for each theory separately. This will give you some idea of the approaches I use and what to expect.
The best way to tell if a particular therapist will meet your needs, however, is to meet with a therapist for an initial consult and experience what it is like to interact with that individual.