PTSD Psychiatrists in Tennessee

Dr. Dennis Valerstain is a board-certified Adult and Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist. After completing his undergraduate education at Emory University, he attended medical school at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He subsequently completed psychiatry residency at University of Miami/Jackson Health System and further sub-specialized at University of Miami/Jackson Health System with a fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Dr. Valerstain has had the opportunity of working with a diverse array of patients including children, adolescents, the severely mentally ill, veterans, and cancer patients across three distinct hospital systems. Dr. Valerstain has had varied clinical experiences in specialty inpatient psychiatry units, emergency psychiatry, consultation liaison psychiatry, psycho-oncology, and outpatient clinics via telemedicine and face to face interactions. Dr. Valerstain has experience working with patients of all ages, particularly those with depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, ADHD, Tic disorders, substance use disorders, and more. Dr. Valerstain's practice focuses on medication management and also employs empathic listening, supportive psychotherapy techniques, and a comprehensive and methodological approach to his visits. Given his broad and diverse training experiences, he enjoys problem solving and working collaboratively with patients (and their families) to navigate their complex issues and jointly focusing on simple solutions to work towards improving their mental health.

Dr. Lauren McClairen is a psychiatrist board certified in General Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine. She completed her medical and psychiatric training at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, TN and a fellowship in Addiction Medicine at Baptist Memorial Hospital in collaboration with IAC (Integrated Addiction Care) in Memphis, TN. Dr. McClairen has clinical experience and practice working with other specialties and disciplines in treatment teams and integrated care models both in the inpatient and outpatient setting. She has held an academic appointment at Baptist Memorial Hospital where she enjoyed teaching and supervising medical residents and fellows in training. She most recently served as the Regional Behavioral Health Medical Director for a group of mental health clinics throughout Tennessee, and as the Chief of Psychiatric Services for a residential treatment facility in Mississippi that also had Partial Hospital and Intensive Outpatient Programming (PHP/IOP). She is experienced in treating patients with a variety of mental health diagnoses including but not limited to depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, ADHD, OCD, PTSD, and those with a history of substance use disorders. Dr. McClairen works collaboratively with her patients to provide treatments tailored to each patient's individualized needs. She prioritizes building trusting relationships and fostering open communication. Patients can expect a compassionate approach often with utilization of supportive therapy, mindfulness, and at times cognitive behavioral and psychodynamic psychotherapy techniques to address their psychosocial stressors and unique needs.

Dr. Mustafa Taquee is a board-certified Adult Psychiatrist. After receiving his undergraduate degree from Wayne State University in Detroit, he completed his medical degree at Oakland University William Beaumont in Rochester, MI. He is a graduate of the Adult Psychiatry Residency Program at St. Mary Mercy Hospital in Livonia, MI. As a testament to Dr. Taquee's desire to help patients reach their full potential, he has also completed a psychotherapy fellowship through the Michigan Psychoanalytic Institute. Dr. Taquee believes that every patient brings their own mosaic of experiences embedded in a unique story. He understands that building a strong therapeutic relationship through empathy, compassion, trust, and respect is essential. He enjoys taking time to understand his patient's goals, offer psychoeducation, and create a collaborative plan for treatment with the patient. He believes in a holistic approach to mental health treatment, which includes medication management, supportive and cognitive behavioral therapy techniques, as well as mind-body medicine techniques. He also has a special interest in psychodynamic therapy, an in-depth therapy modality, which he incorporates in all patient interactions and sessions. Due to the diversity and richness of culture in southeast Michigan, Dr.Taquee has experience working with patients from varied backgrounds. He enjoys the challenge such a heterogeneous environment brings and is particularly fond of working with young adults experiencing life transitions. He also has experience working with patients from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, as well as adolescents and geriatric populations.

Edmund Clark, MD, serves as Chief Psychiatrist at Talkiatry with over 17 years of board-certified experience, including more than 5 years delivering tele-psychiatric care to underserved areas. His career spans 23 years in public service, including leadership roles as Chief of the VA Mental Health Clinics in Jacksonville, FL, and program manager for the University of Florida’s Psychiatry Residency Training Program. A former U.S. Navy psychiatrist, he deployed multiple times, including to Iraq in support of an Army Combat Stress Control clinic, gaining expertise in evidence-based PTSD treatments. Dr. Clark earned his medical degree from the University of Florida and completed his psychiatry residency at the National Naval Medical Center and Walter Reed, serving as chief resident for over 50 military trainees. Before medicine, he served in the U.S. Peace Corps in Kenya.

Dr. Clark values a collaborative approach built on honesty, rapport, and ensuring patients feel heard. He helps patients identify and address multiple factors influencing their mental health, aiming for positive, lasting changes that improve function across life domains. He encourages evidence-based therapies and, when needed, involves other providers to support comprehensive care.

Dr. Clark uses measurement-based tools to assess medication efficacy and guide treatment decisions. He integrates supportive psychotherapy to strengthen coping skills and reduce negative thinking, while incorporating motivational interviewing techniques to promote recovery and self-improvement.

Dr. Chhavi Chaudhary is a dual board-certified psychiatrist with subspecialty certification in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. She completed her fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis, where she also served as Chief Fellow, and her general psychiatry residency at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler. Over the past year, she has provided telehealth psychiatric consultations across emergency rooms and inpatient settings, gaining extensive experience across state hospitals, outpatient clinics, college mental health, preschool, mood disorder, and community health clinics.

Patients working with Dr. Chaudhary can expect a thoughtful and collaborative approach. She emphasizes understanding each individual in the context of their psychosocial development, life experiences, and cultural and societal stressors. She believes mental health cannot be separated from the challenges faced at school, work, within families, and in society at large.

Dr. Chaudhary’s style is warm, curious, and collaborative. She listens carefully, ensuring patients and families feel understood, and works together to create practical, personalized treatment plans. She integrates psychopharmacology with therapy, coping strategies, and resilience-building, aiming for patients to feel supported, empowered, and actively engaged in care that evolves with their needs.

Dr. Katelyn Thompson is board certified in Adult Psychiatry.  

Patients looking for a psychiatric provider will find that Dr. Thompson has a gentle and approachable style.  She believes that each patient was created on purpose and for a purpose.  

The brain is deeply wired for resilience and Dr. Thompson is blessed to witness that while supporting that in her patients.  She focuses on medication management with supportive psychotherapy as she treats a wide variety of psychiatric diagnoses.

Dr. Alicia Garcete is a board-certified child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist in practice for over 12 years. Her practice focuses on medication management, recognizing  family involvement is extremely important and is an integral part of treatment. Dr Garcete has treated a wide variety of patients. Her primary focus is treating depression, anxiety disorders, ADHD, PTSD and OCD. Additionally, she can provide supportive therapy and elements of cognitive-behavioral therapy but on occasions more therapy support may be needed, and the recommendation to bring a psychotherapist on the care team may occur to provide an optimal outcome. Dr. Garcete is bilingual and provides care in both Spanish and English.

Prior to Talkiatry, Dr Garcete treated children, adolescents, and adults was at the intensive outpatient and partial hospitalization levels of care with focus on behavioral approaches in the Depression recovery and Anxiety/OCD programs.

Dr. Garcete earned her Medical Degree from the Universidad Nacional de Asuncion, Facultad de Ciencias Medicas in Paraguay. She completed her general psychiatrist residency at Maimonides Medical Center in New York. She was also a Fellow in Psychoanalysis at the Psychoanalytic Institute, Affiliate to New York University School of Medicine, and completed her child and adolescent psychiatrist fellowship at Elmhurst Hospital Center, affiliate to Mount Sinai Hospital. Dr. Garcete also held a clinical assistant professor appointment from the department of psychiatry at SUNY Downstate Medical Center.

LaJoya McDonald is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with extensive experience across outpatient, telehealth, and managed care settings. She holds a Master’s degree in Social Work and specializes in treating anxiety, depression, trauma, grief and loss, and life transitions.

LaJoya is dedicated to creating a safe, supportive, and collaborative environment where clients feel heard and empowered. Her treatment style is integrative and person-centered, utilizing evidence-based approaches such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), trauma therapy, Motivational Interviewing (MI), Solution-Focused Therapy, Interpersonal Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, supportive therapy, goal-oriented therapy, and mindfulness-based techniques.

LaJoya helps clients explore their thoughts, emotions, and patterns while developing practical tools for coping, healing, and growth. She believes in tailoring each treatment plan to the unique goals, strengths, and values of the individual, and takes pride in walking alongside her clients through life’s challenges with compassion and respect.

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Melinda Morris is a dedicated and compassionate LCSW with over 6 years of experience in the field of mental health. She holds a Master of Science in Social Work from the University of Tennessee and has been a practicing counselor since 2018. Melinda specializes in helping individuals navigate life's challenges, including anxiety, depression, trauma, transitional periods, and relationship issues. Her approach isclient-centered and integrative, combining techniques from cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), and solution-focused therapy to tailor treatment plans to each client's unique needs and identifying their personal strengths to enhance theirprogress in becoming and feeling the best version of themselves in any new chapter they maybe experiencing. Throughout her career, Melinda has worked primarily in nonprofit and private practice settings. She is known for her empathetic listening, non-judgmental attitude, and ability to build rapport and trust to create a safe and supportive environment for her clients so they can find their voice and be truly heard and understood. Melinda is committed to ongoing professional development and regularly attends workshops and conferences to stay current with the latest advancements in mental health treatment. She is also an active member of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). When she's not working, Melinda enjoys traveling, hiking, painting/drawing, and spending time with her awesome kiddo and fur babies.

Amy Bichsel Pacheco Piña is a compassionate and experienced psychotherapist dedicated to helping individuals navigate the complexities of life with resilience and confidence. Amy holds a Master's in Social Work from the University of Nebraska-Omaha in 2008 and is licensed as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW). With 16 years of experience in the mental health field, Amy specializes in anxiety, depression, trauma (including Narcissistic Abuse), and grief. Amy prides herself on creating a non-judgmental and healing environment that allows for self-discovery and assists clients in identifying their authentic selves. She has experience in many methods and techniques, ensuring that her approach integrates evidence-based practices with experiential techniques which are tailored to each client's unique needs to allow for nervous system regulation and a sense of safety within themselves. She believes in fostering a collaborative therapeutic relationship where clients feel empowered to set and achieve meaningful goals. From a holistic perspective, Amy incorporates techniques such as identifying strengths, mindfulness, polyvagal techniques, challenging core belief systems, early childhood, and attachment types to heal the mind, body, and spirit. When not working with clients, Amy enjoys being outdoors, reading, and spending time with her husband, son, and two dogs.

Dr. Gulati is a board-certified adult psychiatrist who has been in practice for over 10 years. She has worked in inpatient units, private practice, and community mental health, as well as served as Chief Medical Officer of a large psychiatric hospital. In 2018 she was awarded the Charleston Choice Award for Best Psychiatrist in Charleston, South Carolina. She currently resides in South Florida. Dr. Gulati's practice centers around treating the whole patient: mind, body, and spirit. She believes the judicious use of psychiatric medications, coupled with psychotherapy and alternative treatments such as meditation and yoga, can bring about transformative changes in the lives of those suffering from depression, anxiety, and other mental conditions and life issues. Dr. Gulati graduated with Honors in Psychology from The University of Florida, received her medical degree from The University of South Alabama School of Medicine, completed a clinical postdoctoral research fellowship at Boston University School of Medicine, and completed her Psychiatry residency training at The University of North Carolina. She is currently obtaining her MBA. After residency, she worked as a psychiatric hospitalist at Trident Medical Center in Charleston and has also worked in private practice. Most recently she served as Chief Medical Officer for an 80-bed psychiatric hospital, Coral Shores Behavioral Hospital in Stuart, FL. In addition to general adult psychiatry, Dr. Gulati received extensive training in one of the nation's largest women's mood disorder programs at The University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and enjoys treating peripartum and postpartum mood and anxiety disorders. She is also well trained in addiction medicine and received additional training in buprenorphine use for opioid addiction.

Dr. Lauren Morris is a board-certified psychiatrist and a graduate of the Duke Psychiatry residency program. She is originally from NC - she studied Neuroscience at NCSU, and attended medical school at ECU. Dr. Morris's practice focuses on medication management, and incorporates insight-oriented therapy during visits. Dr. Morris takes a patient-centered evidenced based approach to psychiatry. Dr. Morris is joining the Talkiatry team after working as a staff psychiatrist at the Durham VA, where she also served as a consulting professor for the Duke psychiatry residency program. In her free time, Dr. Morris enjoys hiking and traveling.

Dr. Steven Wilkening is a board-certified adult psychiatrist.He completed his Bachelor of Arts degree at Cornell University followed by a neuroscience researchfocused Masters degree at the University of Mississippi. He then attended medical school at theUniversity of Mississippi School of Medicine, graduating with his MD degree as a Medical StudentResearch Scholar and member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. He completed adultpsychiatry residency training at the University of Cincinnati and has since been working primarily intelepsychiatry.He has experience treating a wide variety of psychiatric conditions and also recognizes that lifestylefactors such as sleep, physical activity and stress-reduction are foundations of good mental health.Alongside medication management, he provides brief supportive psychotherapy, psychoeducation, aswell as elements of cognitive behavioral and solution-focused therapies to assist patients in meetingtheir goals. He often encourages patients to see a therapist in addition to a psychiatrist.

Dr. Carolyn Benson has 21 years of experience in treating adults, adolescents, and children. After graduating medical school at Brody School of Medicine in Greenville, North Carolina, she moved to Rochester, NY to complete her residency and fellowship at University of Rochester School of Medicine. Her focus over the last ten years has been on working with young adults, children/adolescents, and their families. Her expertise covers a wide array of therapeutic modalities and mental health diagnoses. The primary focus of her sessions is to provide medication management with education on treatment options. She will provide therapy models that are appropriate within that 20�30 minute medication session. If longer therapy time frames are indicated, she will discuss the need to add a therapist to your treatment team to achieve optimal care. Her successful treatment outcomes are based on experience, staying current on psychiatric treatments, and having open communication with patients and families of children/adolescents so they can choose the most effective treatments. Prior to medical school, she worked in both marine and biochemical research venues and was coauthor in several research papers. She has an avid interest in the emerging field of neuroscience and frequently gives talks to colleagues and students on current research topics. Her primary objectives in her work are to help patients achieve success in both treatment and life goals and to always take time to truly listen to her patients.

Dr. Wilt is board certified in adult psychiatry. She earned her medical degree from Louisiana State University in New Orleans, where she also completed her four-year residency in psychiatry. Dr. Wilt takes a biopsychosocial approach to mental health and has over 13 years of experience with an array of mental health diagnoses including Depression, anxiety, ADHD, PTSD, bipolar disorder, and sleep disorders. Dr. Wilt enjoys spending time getting to know her patients and working hand in hand with them to accurately diagnose and treat the symptoms they are experiencing. Dr. Wilt employs a holistic approach to mental health with a focus on incorporating medication management and supportive therapy to improve her patients' quality of life.‍

Lily Mudry is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor Supervisor, a Certified Clinical Supervisor with the Substance Abuse Board, a Licensed Clinical Addictions Specialist, a Master in Addictions Counselor, and a National Certified Counselor. Lily specializes in mental health practice and addictions counseling, with a particular focus on trauma-informed care. She offers individual, couples, and family counseling, utilizing a variety of evidence-based treatment interventions, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Motivational Interviewing.

Lily has extensive training in trauma-related therapies, including Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR), Polyvagal Theory, Emotional Freedom Technique, Brain Spotting and Mindfulness-Based Strategies. She believes in a holistic approach to therapy, recognizing the importance of understanding the brain and the autonomic nervous system, as well as the role of symptom management and prevention. Lily’s therapeutic philosophy emphasizes body awareness and the cyclical patterns of thoughts and emotions that influence overall well-being. Her focus is not only on healing and stability but also on inspiring and empowering clients to continue growing and evolving into their true authentic selves.

Lily’s approach integrates trauma-focused therapy, CBT, Solution-Focused Therapy, Reality Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, and EMDR to help clients make meaningful progress in their therapeutic journey. She works primarily with clients experiencing depression, anxiety, substance use disorders, and trauma-related issues. Lily strongly believes in empowering clients through psychoeducation, self-advocacy, and collaboration, ensuring that therapy is driven by motivation, direction, and progress.

Her first sessions with clients are focused on establishing a safe and comfortable environment, building rapport, and understanding each client’s challenges and goals. By creating a space for open communication, Lily works alongside clients to identify their needs and develop a personalized approach to therapy.