Shelly Allen

Shelly is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Connecticut and New York City. Her approach is functional and integrative, combining evidence-based psychotherapy treatments with holistic knowledge and principles. Her areas of expertise include anxiety, body image issues, eating disorders, grief, sexual concerns, and trauma. 

Clients frequently come to Shelly when they realize that previous experiences are taking a toll on their here and now. Often, current symptoms stem from trauma at a young age, such as childhood abuse, early loss of a parent or friend, or a chronic illness in the family. Shelly helps them achieve greater internal awareness in order to release underlying tensions. 

The underlying thread of Shelly’s expertise is in helping people improve their relationships with their bodies, whether that’s manifested in their relationship to food and disordered eating, sexual issues and addictions, anxiety, or depression. She recognizes that the body generally needs to heal as well as the mind, so she often works with nutritionists and integrative doctors in addition to psychiatrists. Her underlying goal is to understand the client as a whole, and address the root of their discomfort to alleviate symptoms.

Shelly’s integrative approach to treatment is informed by her certification in holistic health and nutrition, which she completed before her postgraduate training. She often incorporates tools from skills-based approaches like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) but will adjust the caliber depending on what works best for the client. 

Her practice is open to adults across the lifespan, teenagers, and clients who are seeking couples and family counseling. She looks forward to meeting you at her Westport office.