Gillian R. Galdy Counseling, PLLC

Couple, Family, and Individual Counseling

About

Gillian R. Galdy, LCMHCA, NCC, MS
(she/her)

Education and Experience

I earned a Master of Science (MS) in Counseling at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) with a concentration in Couple and Family Counseling in May 2022. While at UNCG, I had the privilege of working as a research assistant to Dr. Connie T. Jones. Our research included grief, loss, and substance use among the Black community; secondary trauma, compassion fatigue, and prevention; and children of incarcerated parents.

My clinical training included a one year internship at CAS Counseling Psychotherapy Associates. Under their supervision and guidance, I focused on eating and feeding disorders as well as couple and family work. 

Additionally, I worked as a domestic violence and sexual assault victim advocate in both Durham and Chatham County, North Carolina; received my 200-hour yoga teacher training certificate from Asheville Yoga Center in 2015; and, I have completed Levels 1 and 2 of the Gottman Method Couples Therapy training.

I am currently under the clinical supervision of Brittany Wyche, PhD, LCMHCS, NCC and Adam Mathews, PhD, LMFT.

Focus

I provide gender-affirming, sex-positive, and anti-racist counseling to couples, families, and individuals. My door is open to people of all orientations, relationship styles, religions, and backgrounds. 

My areas of specialty include relationship issues and transitions, gender and sexuality exploration, sexual intimacy concerns, spiritual/existential issues, eating and feeding disorders, life transitions, and trauma (including sexual assault and domestic violence recovery). 

Additionally, I have a passion for working with parents as a way to offer allyship to children. I love working with parents of LGBTQIA+ children and/or children with feeding and eating disorders. In tandem with family counseling, I believe giving attention to parents, separate from their children, is not only beneficial for the familial relationship, but can prevent the perpetuation of trauma, disconnection, and future mental health concerns for the children. 

Professional Orientation

I practice person centered, mindfulness-based, multiculturally competent psychotherapy. I work from a Relational/Cultural theoretical orientation, meaning that I believe the therapeutic relationship is a key to healing within treatment. Additionally, I practice from a HAES-approach (Health at Every Size) when engaging in body issues, as well as eating and feeding disorders. I incorporate interventions from Polyvagal Theory, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), and the Gottman Method, among others, as appropriate to your needs as an individual, couple/relationship, or family. This integrative approach allows for addressing your needs and goals in a fluid, empathetic, and collaborative way.

Personal

I actively and proudly identify as an anti-racist, intersectional feminist. I believe in the constant and ever evolving pursuit of social, racial, gender, sexual, economic, and environmental justice.

If you are curious about my personal identities, please ask. I initiate most therapeutic relationships by disclosing my identities in order to normalize conversations about our differences and to allow a safe space for your identities to be acknowledged and explored. 

What to Expect

Starting a therapeutic relationship can be intimidating, confusing, and overwhelming whether it is your first time receiving mental health care or you have years of experience. I am humbled that you are taking steps toward receiving the care you need.

I begin every relationship with a free 20-minute phone consultation. If we both determine that I am a good therapeutic fit for you, your family, or for you and your partner, we will schedule an intake session. Prior to the intake session you will receive intake forms that will help me prepare ahead of time so that we may spend our intake session focusing on what brings you to counseling. If I have any specific questions or concerns based on your forms, I will address them in our intake session. 

Typically sessions will be talk-therapy, meaning we will have a conversation. Depending on your needs, I may take on a more passive or active role in the conversation. Silence is not uncommon or unwelcome. Sessions are 50 minutes. 

 

What is Clinical Mental Health Counseling?

There can be a lot of confusion around the difference between clinical mental health counseling, psychology, clinical social work, and “therapy”. When folks think of therapy, typically they are thinking about psychotherapy, or talk therapy: a “therapist” sitting with a clipboard in a chair listening to a client talk from another chair or couch. So what makes clinical mental health counseling different from the other types of therapy? The short answer is: not much on the surface. I offer psychotherapy, and for the most part what you will experience with me might feel extremely similar with a clinical social worker. This may be because as psychotherapy clinicians, we are training in the same skills (e.g., Emotionally Focused Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, etc.). What sets clinical mental health counseling apart from social work, or social work from psychology, is our education and our origin stories. As a counseling student, I trained specifically as a clinician who views healing from an holistic lens. When I seek to understand you and your needs as a client, I look at the whole picture, from your childhood, to your work life, to your environment, to the social climate. Every counselor, every therapist, is different, however the core of who we are as clinicians and how we practice mental health care has a foundation rooted in our schools of thought and education. 

Examples of Focus Topics

Couple and Family Examples

  • Relationship and/or intimacy concerns
  • Infidelity
  • Sexual intimacy and/or education
  • Life transitions (e.g., marriage, moving in together, separation, divorce, joining of families, job loss)
  • Family planning (e.g., having children, fertility concerns)
  • Ethical non-monogamy (ENM)
  • Feeding and Eating disorders
  • Gender transitions

Individual Examples

  • Stress and anxiety
  • Mood disorders
  • Trauma
  • Feeding and Eating disorders
  • Relationship concerns and/or intimacy concerns
  • Career planning
  • Religious, spiritual, and/or existential concerns
  • Gender and/or sexual identity 

Sessions and Fees

Individual

Individual sessions are one-on-one with me. You as the individual are my focus. You may choose to include a loved one in some of our sessions, however, you will remain the client and I your counselor. Together we will identify objectives and interventions to help you reach your goals. 

Couple/Relational and Family

In a Couple/Relational or Family session, the couple/relationship or family is the client. I view the relationship(s) as the focus of our work rather than a single individual. That is not to say that these sessions will be absent of individual work and attention; in fact, it is inevitable that will happen. However, the main focus of our work will be for the benefit of the relationship(s) and to bring your relationship(s) to a healthy and sustainable homeostasis.

Fees

Individual 50 minute session: $150

Couple and Family 50 minute session: $175

I offer both in-person and Telehealth sessions. I am out-of-network for insurance providers. 

Sliding Scale

I reserve spaces on my caseload for sliding scale clients. Together, we will determine an appropriate rate. Please do not hesitate to reach out with questions or concerns about fees or sliding scale options. 

Research and Publications

Research

My previous research focus, under the direction of Dr. Connie T. Jones, included grief, loss, and substance use among the Black community; secondary trauma, compassion fatigue, and prevention; and, children of incarcerated parents.

I have a particular research interest in consent based, LGBQIA+, and gender affirming sex education as a possible means to decrease domestic violence, sexual assault, and interpersonal violence.

For interest in research collaboration or assistance, please contact me via email.

Publications

 Jones, C. T., & Galdy, G. R. (2022). African Americans: Grief, loss, and substance use. Grief work in addictions counseling. Routledge.

Contact

Gillian R. Galdy, LCMHCA, NCC, MS

Email: gillianrgaldycounseling@gmail.com 

Phone: (919) 213-1127

Address: 817 Broad Street, Durham, NC 27705


Hours: Monday-Friday | 10am-6pm

Please allow two business days for a response to inquiry emails. I look forward to connecting with you. 

Monday-Friday | 10am-6pm
Please allow two business days for a response to a new inquiry. 
Gillian R. Galdy Counseling, PLLC
gillianrgaldycounseling@gmail.com
919.213.1127