Dr. Wendy Coughlin is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Collaborative Facilitator, and Master Addiction Counselor, practicing in Pinellas County Florida. With the advent of telehealth and HIPAA compliant video conferencing, Dr. Coughlin works with families throughout the state and throughout the nation (Services outside the state of Florida are limited to family and dependency court matters that originate in the State).
When choosing a mental health professional, it is wise to look beyond the educational credentials and license to the philosophies and style of the service provider. Dr. Coughlin is an engaged, interactive psychotherapist when working with families, couples, and individuals wishing to improve their lives and relationships. She believes all people can benefit from professional intervention and anyone sincerely willing to change, can change for the better. After decades of helping others, Dr. C has many tools and techniques to help.
A major focus of this practice is working with separating families going for dissolution of marriage, as well as folks with children seeking to coparent from separate households. As an expert, Dr. Coughlin skillfully navigates the stressors of separation and assists families in transition. When needed, she provides mental health and substance use disorder evaluations to the court. If additional investigation is requested, she is certified to work as a Guardian ad Litem to protect the best interests of children.
For years mental health practice has mandated absolute confidentiality which often resulted in treatment occurring in a vacuum. Treatment success was determined by patient report in the bubble of the therapeutic environment. Family court matters were typically managed by litigation, a process whereby two people “spar off” to defend their own agendas, represented by attorneys “duking it out” in court.
Collaborative practice is based on a recognition that any change in one person will be impacted by, and will impact, others. Dr. Coughlin’s philosophical approach to all services recognizes the importance of considering the environment in which the individual, couple or family live and work. Her collaborative efforts are most obvious when she acts as a Collaborative Facilitator on a professional team engaged to help a couple separate when a marriage or cohabitation ends.
If children are involved in a dissolution process, Collaborative Process insulates the children, teaches parents how to work together while coming apart, and minimizes the damage to the family.
Education
- Union Institute & University, Doctor of Philosophy – PhD, Clinical Psychology, 1995
- Hofstra University, M.S., 1974
- New College of Hofstra, B.A., June 1973
Licenses & Certifications
- Certified Family Law Mediator, Florida Supreme Court
- Certified Guardian ad Litem, Florida Guardian Ad Litem Office
- Collaborative Law Mental Health Professional
- Masters Certified Addiction Professional, Florida Certification Board, Credential ID MCAP