Jackie works with couples, individuals, and families. Her specialties include relationship struggles, grief and loss, blended families, addiction, boundaries, and launching young adults. She is experienced in helping clients successfully navigate the challenges that may be encountered during life's struggles. Life transitions can be difficult. These stages may include marriage and remarriage, family creation and blending, young adult children who are launching and becoming independent, parents struggling with how to fill their "empty nest," and adult children caring for their elderly parents. Jackie is a licensed marriage and family therapist in Georgia and holds a master’s degree in family therapy from Mercer University School of Medicine. Additionally, she is a Gottman Level 3 trained couple's therapist and a Gottman 7 Principles Educator™. Clients find her to be empathic, collaborative, understanding, and perceptive. Jackie is originally from Western Pennsylvania but has made Metro Atlanta her home. She is a member of the Georgia Association of Marriage and Family Therapy and American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy.

It’s a fact of life that our journeys involve highs and lows, mountaintops and valleys. While we cannot always prevent some of the challenges, the losses, and the tragedies that come our way, we can find meaning and purpose in the hardships we face. As a licensed professional counselor, Kara considers it an honor to come alongside you in your journey toward healing, restoration, and growth. Kara uses a variety of treatment modalities, depending on the individual’s needs and goals, including Solution Focused Brief Therapy, Dialectal Behavior Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, family systems, and cognitive behavioral therapy. As a practitioner of Trust-Based Relational Intervention, Kara also values being trauma-informed and strengths-based in her work. Kara received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Gardner-Webb University and completed her master’s in marriage and family counseling at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Prior to joining the Summit, Kara worked in private practice and nonprofit residential and outpatient settings, giving her an extensive background serving individuals and families with many different needs. When she isn’t working, Kara enjoys being outside with her family, whether it’s enjoying a cup of coffee on the back porch, playing a game of pickleball, or taking a family walk. Kara also enjoys reading a good book, cooking new meals with her husband, or trying to figure out the day’s Wordle.

Marina is a compassionate and dedicated therapist who specializes in working with adolescents and young adults. With a deep commitment to supporting her clients through life’s challenges, Marina offers a safe and nonjudgmental space for teens and young adults to explore their emotions and navigate their mental health struggles. She works with individuals dealing with a variety of issues, including anxiety, life transitions, and identity questions. Marina also provides guidance to teens whose parents are going through a divorce, helping them process the emotional impact and adjust to new family dynamics. As a Christian, Marina integrates faith into her therapeutic approach, offering spiritual support alongside traditional therapeutic techniques. She believes that faith can be an important source of strength and resilience in the healing process and gently weaves it into her work when clients are open to it. Marina is passionate about helping young people develop a strong sense of self and find peace amid life’s uncertainties. Through her compassionate approach, Marina empowers her clients to grow, heal, and move forward with confidence.

Rebecca is a licensed psychologist with a specialization in neuropsychology. She provides psychoeducational and neuropsychological evaluations for children, adolescents, and young adults. Most of her clients are children and adolescents who are experiencing learning or attention problems in school. In addition to her expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of learning disorders and ADHD, she also has a strong clinical and research background in the diagnosis and treatment of cognitive problems associated with neurological and other medical disorders. Rebecca provides comprehensive assessments as well, which include measurements of intellectual ability, academic achievement, learning, memory, attention, behavioral and emotional well-being, language skills, executive function and reasoning skills, visual-spatial processing skills, and fine motor and sensory processing skills. She offers brief ADHD and learning disability screenings to determine whether a comprehensive psychoeducational evaluation is warranted. These screenings provide a valuable service to parents who are unsure of whether or not to pursue a comprehensive evaluation for their child. Tailored psychological evaluations are also offered to adults.

Regardless of what's happening in your life, you deserve to feel understood, supported, and equipped. Maybe you've noticed you're anxious more than you're not, or you just don't enjoy life the way you used to. Maybe you've been through something awful or are grieving the loss of someone you love. I can help. I love working with people from all stages of life, including, teens, young adults, and couples. I specialize in anxiety, depression, grief, life transitions, self-esteem, and relationship issues. I would love to help you navigate life's challenges and pursue growth and wellness.

Christina recognizes how difficult it can be to reach out for help when you've hit your limit or just need some guidance and support through a current stumbling block. Christina enjoys helping parents struggling to understand their child's feelings and behaviors. She believes in the "whole family" approach, where she can provide space for both parenting strategies and the child's expression of emotions through Play Therapy. She works individually with parents and children of all ages. She helps parents understand the impact of their own upbringing, so they can work through any unresolved triggers as they now parent their own children. Christina helps adults struggling with life stressors or transitions, childhood trauma, grief and loss, and relational or family struggles. She has extensive experience with parenting, behavior difficulties with children, complex trauma, grief and loss, and anxiety.  Christina is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Registered Play Therapist, and trained EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) therapist. She has a private practice in downtown Decatur.

Melanie completed her bachelor’s degree in photojournalism through the University of Georgia. While completing her BA, she discovered that what she enjoyed most about photojournalism was meeting people and helping them tell their stories. Her newly found passion led her to complete her master’s in clinical mental health counseling at Denver Seminary. As part of her studies, Melanie worked in a college setting to counsel young adults dealing with anxiety, depression, and relational issues. After moving back to Georgia, she has worked extensively to help both adolescents and adults manage a range of mental health problems. Melanie is passionate about working with individuals on issues of grief and loss, career concerns, and relationship issues. She has years of experience working with teens and young adults with identity development, family and peer relationships, and anxiety related to school. She also enjoys helping premarital couples create a strong foundation for their relationships to flourish. In addition, Melanie understands the unique stressors faced by individuals working in the helping and medical professions. She desires to help these individuals develop mindsets and strategies to prevent and manage compassion fatigue.  Melanie seeks to create a warm, supportive environment where her clients feel heard and valued as they develop skills and process emotions to face life’s challenges. Melanie helps her clients pursue their goals through a holistic approach, using a variety of treatment methods that take into consideration a client’s physical, relational, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing. In her spare time, Melanie enjoys spending time with her family and friends, reading, baking, and spending time outdoors. She is a member of the LPCA of Georgia.

Trish Hastings is a licensed professional counselor and board certified counselor with an MA in counseling and a post-master’s certificate in counseling (similar to a specialist’s degree) from Regent University. In private practice in NE Georgia since 1996, she offers individual and marriage counseling and generally works with clients from age 14 to senior adults. When the client agrees, she incorporates psychology and faith-based principles. Trish has worked in a variety of settings conducting therapy with individuals, couples, families, and groups with a diverse clientele who present with a wide range of issues, including relationship challenges, depression, anxiety, abuse, trauma, stress, grief, anger, codependency, compulsive behaviors, and faith-based concerns.   Committed to offering therapy that is professional and competent, Trish is supportive, nurturing, and thorough from the initial assessment throughout the therapeutic process.  Her aspiration is to come alongside clients in a collaborative manner with God and the clients to assist in their journeys toward freedom, healing, and wholeness. She views each client as having value, dignity, and being worthy of respect.

Heidi does some of her best work as a therapist with young adults and adults who are facing a life transition and are motivated to make changes. Together we will explore the roadblocks and thinking patterns that may be holding you back from achieving your goals. With a rich background in career counseling, Heidi recognizes the value of seeking and defining your God-given identity and purpose in life. Through knowing who you are more clearly, you can take steps to plan out the life you want to create for yourself. Her goal in counseling, using a holistic and psychoeducational approach, is to help you gain insight and empower you to take steps to reach your fullest potential.  As a certified PREPARE/ENRICH facilitator, she works with couples, helping them better prepare for their marriage. As a career development facilitator, Heidi is passionate and equipped to assist high school and college-age students and adults who are exploring and/or pivoting in their career path.  Heidi believes that some of our greatest growth comes out of our hardest seasons in life. If you’re experiencing a challenging season, she considers it a privilege to hear your story and walk alongside you on your journey. Heidi is accepting clients at the Roswell location or virtually for Georgia and Texas residents. 

Maureen S. Bixler, LCSW, is a licensed clinical social worker with a Master’s and Bachelor’s of Social Work from the University of Georgia. She has years of experience working with children, adolescents and families in both individual and group settings. She has worked in different social work settings such as schools, in-home counseling and child welfare. Maureen created Live Life Counseling, LLC in 2014, with the main goal to help others live life to its fullest potential. Maureen offers a holistic, healing approach to therapy. She utilizes many different treatment modalities; Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Trauma-Focused CBT (TF-CBT), Existential Therapy, Family Systems, Attachment and Bonding Based Parenting, Strength Perspective and Client-Center Therapy. She offers individual, couple and family therapy. Often clients come to her with complex trauma which surfaces through addiction, anxiety and or depression. She utilizes Dialectical Behavioral Techniques (DBT) and Progressive Counting (PC) which allow a client to work through their issue and underlying trauma. In every session with Maureen she hopes to be a place for one to feel heard, validated and encouraged. Maureen loves spending time with her husband and being a mom to their four young children.