Kellie Gainey LMHC

Kellie Gainey has been supporting their community professionally with non-profit agencies since 2015 and as a clinical mental health counselor since 2019. Their work focused on assisting adults with severe and persistent mental illnesses maintain independence in the community through supportive housing and transitional employment programs, supporting the reunification of families involved with ACS through the Functional Family Therapy model modified for the child welfare system; and providing supportive counseling to community members with substance-related and addictive disorders focuses on approaches on abstinence, moderation, and harm reduction, based on the expressed needs and wants of the individual.

Through both private practice hospital-based OASAS certified outpatient program settings, Kellie had provided supportive counseling to individuals and families using an eclectic therapeutic strategy based on trauma-informed and person-centered approaches to facilitate collaborative work between patient and practitioner.

Kellie believes in the importance of normalizing alternative lifestyles and traditionally ‘taboo’ experiences to reduce the distress caused by internalized shame and fear. Kellie values education and community advocacy to create accessibility to supportive services, and the exchange of knowledge to assist both individuals and families in reducing distress and improving their quality of life.

Education

• MS in Education, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, St John’s University
• BA in Sociology, Wagner College