My name is Anthony Shields and I am a licensed marriage and family therapist at Renewing Hope Family Counseling Services, Inc. with over thirteen years of clinical experience. I am incredibly passionate about this field and driven to provide genuine, consistent, and empowering therapeutic services to each client one session at a time. I have extensive experience working with transitional age youth (16-25), and assisting them with developing the skills and tools needed to navigate the challenges they may encounter throughout high school, starting a new phase of life in college, or entering the workforce for the first time. I have always felt comfortable and confident engaging with those much older than I am and have found success in working with individuals generations apart. My goal with each client, regardless of age, is to first build a strong rapport and develop a clear picture of how to begin meeting that individual’s mental health needs with identifiable goals and objectives. With my clients, we collaboratively explore, identify, and reinforce the strengths they may have and not realize, while simultaneously discussing practical methods and techniques for symptom reduction, healing, and the overall improvement of the quality of their lives. I am well versed in several treatment modalities and proficient in working intently with those dealing with anxiety and depression disorders, as well as trauma, borderline personality disorder, psychosis, and bipolar disorder.  I take a very relaxed yet direct approach to problem solving, and I always encourage a lighthearted nature to sessions when clients are taught how to show themselves the grace and compassion they deserve. Clients coming into treatment ready to work toward their personal mental health recovery will be met with someone fully prepared to walk alongside them and equip them with exactly what they need to know to successfully handle whatever life may throw their way..