WHO WE ARE
10 Atlanta Therapists for Business Owners & Entrepreneurs
Building and scaling a business demands constant decision making, high risk tolerance, and adaptability.
For many entrepreneurs and business owners in Atlanta, this intense responsibility eventually manifests as chronic founder burnout, isolation as a leader, high anxiety, and a complete blur between personal identity and business outcomes.
Steady Hope Counseling provides discreet, specialized therapy tailored specifically to the unique psychological demands of leadership, helping you guide your company with clarity without sacrificing your well being, relationships, or mental health.
None of us are immune to being impacted by life.
Who We Support:
We provide specialized care to Atlanta founders, executives, and business owners across various stages of company growth.
Whether you are launching a new startup, navigating scaling, or planning a strategic exit, our practice addresses the distinct psychological realities and heavy responsibilities that come with leading an organization. We regularly partner with:
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Startup founders and venture backed leaders managing investor expectations, rapid hiring demands, and high burn rate pressure.
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Small business owners and local operators holding full accountability for payroll, operational logistics, and daily team management.
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Cofounders and equity partners resolving interpersonal friction, communication breakdowns, and strategic misalignment.
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C suite executives and managing directors navigating board expectations, organizational restructuring, and upper level isolation.
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Agency heads and creative directors balancing client deliverables, talent retention, and sustainable business development.
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Family business leaders navigating intergenerational succession, legacy expectations, and complex family dynamics in the workplace.
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Entrepreneurs navigating acquisitions or exits with high stakes financial transitions alongside the deep identity shifts that follow stepping away.
Meet Our Therapists
Brenley Wiley
I am the best fit for female founders, executive mothers, and working parents seeking specialized perinatal and relational support to navigate high stakes leadership, major life transitions, and maternal mental health.
Holding certification in perinatal mental health alongside background in law and public policy gives me a distinct perspective on the intense intersection of corporate leadership, pregnancy, and parenthood.
Utilizing Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and trauma informed practices through an attachment-based lens allows us to safely process high pressure anxiety, perfectionist guilt, and major identity transitions.
Within a warm and nonjudgmental space, I help business leaders and working parents navigate complex relational dynamics, establish firm personal boundaries, and build a sustainable life both at home and at the office.
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Kim DeRamus Lareau
Good fit for founders, executive leaders, and business owners seeking an experienced, attachment focused clinician to process complex trauma, restore personal identity, and navigate high stakes leadership.
Over fifteen years of clinical leadership and trauma informed expertise inform my work helping high achieving professionals navigate complex identity loss, executive stress, and systemic burnout.
Rooted in an attachment based framework, my practice prioritizes deep trust and collaboration so business leaders can reclaim personal wholeness while steering high stakes ventures.
I empower clients through a grounded, holistic perspective that allows you to align core values with daily operations, cultivate long term emotional resilience, and thrive in demanding environments.
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Fern Lima
Good fit for young entrepreneurs, founders, and emerging business leaders seeking a supportive, trauma informed space to navigate grief, severe anxiety, and major life transitions.
Grief, acute anxiety, and intense life transitions often leave young entrepreneurs and emerging leaders feeling completely overwhelmed or deeply disconnected from their daily lives.
Incorporating Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing alongside parts work and Dialectical Behavior Therapy skills allows us to process underlying trauma and soothe a dysregulated nervous system.
Through a warm, person centered approach, I offer business leaders a grounded environment to develop self compassion, process past pain, and navigate high stakes responsibilities.
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Sam Merrill
I am the best fit for female founders, executive mothers, and working parents seeking an EMDR and attachment focused space to heal trauma, navigate postpartum transition, and unwind chronic stress.
Tending to hidden relational wounds and birth trauma while managing high stakes professional demands requires targeted, body level nervous system regulation.
Combining EMDR, Parts Work, and attachment theory allows us to address root level distress so you can shift away from chronic survival mode into true physical presence.
By providing a compassionate, highly secure space, I help women in leadership process unexpressed emotions, navigate complex spiritual journeys, and establish an authentic foundation for both home and business.
Lauren Jarrell
I am the best fit for business owners, founders, and executives seeking a compassionate, attachment focused environment to explore personal identity, family dynamics, and sustainable stress management.
Cultivating preventative strategies and building upon existing strengths allows us to effectively address chronic founder burnout, relationship strain, and executive anxiety.
Grounded in attachment theory, my collaborative approach creates a safe, culturally sensitive space to examine family dynamics, conflict styles, and core personal boundaries.
Walking alongside business leaders, I guide clients to uncover their innate resilience and establish grounded coping methods while navigating the heavy weight of ownership.
McCayla Berry
Good fit for business owners, working parents, and executive leaders seeking an EMDR trained, psychodynamic environment to navigate deep seated anxiety, parenting struggles, and chronic overload.
Slowing down to explore protective patterns and early wounds allows us to unwind the constant, fast paced overwhelm of managing high stakes professional roles and family life.
Utilizing Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing alongside ego state work and psychodynamic principles, I help clients safely reprocess trauma related anxiety, OCD, and emotional dysregulation at a deep, relational level.
By offering a curious, unhurried space, I guide leaders to process internal pressure, step out of reactive coping habits, and reconnect with a sense of calm self understanding.
Angie Hartley
I am the best fit for entrepreneurs, cross cultural leaders, and couples seeking a relationally focused, EFT trained space to process relational trauma, spiritual abuse, and severe emotional stress.
Integrating Emotionally Focused Therapy alongside Acceptance and Commitment Therapy allows us to navigate complex relational dynamics, intense stress, and the emotional toll of high stakes leadership.
Drawing upon extensive international experience supporting survivors of severe trauma and cross cultural leaders, I offer a steady, collaborative environment to explore deep-seated challenges without judgment.
Through targeted Dialectical Behavioral Therapy tools and attachment based care, I guide clients to safely process heavy emotions, establish authentic interpersonal connections, and remain grounded in high pressure moments.
Jenny Romano
Good fit for female founders, women in leadership, and high achieving mothers seeking a holistic, trauma informed space to navigate grief, anxiety, and the exhaustion of carrying heavy responsibilities alone.
Holding the immense pressure of leadership while quietly carrying unaddressed grief, anxiety, or maternal transition often keeps high achieving women trapped in survival mode.
Integrating trauma and attachment informed modalities with a mind-body holistic perspective allows us to gently unwind deep seated exhaustion, process hidden losses, and restore internal safety.
In our reflective, unhurried sessions, I partner with business leaders to help them lay down the need to hold it all together, construct grounded stress management tools, and step into an authentic, connected life beyond company demands.
Amanda Peters
I am the best fit for multicultural entrepreneurs, third culture adults, and mission driven leaders seeking an attachment focused space to resolve relational conflict, explore identity, and overcome organizational burnout.
Drawing from an attachment based framework, my work focuses on how foundational family patterns and cultural roots shape our present leadership style and relationship dynamics.
Navigating multicultural identities or stepping away from institutional burnout requires a nuanced, compassionate approach to boundary setting and internal identity work.
Within a safe and culturally sensitive environment, I collaborate with business leaders to resolve deep seated conflict, process major life transitions, and build grounded coping strategies that honor their full lived experience.
Jessica Pentsil
Good fit for neurodivergent entrepreneurs, non profit leaders, and executive mothers seeking a practical, supportive space to manage ADHD, decision fatigue, and severe burnout.
Having managed high pressure operational roles in non profit and outpatient settings, I understand how demanding environments, constant decision making, and organizational fatigue impact overall well being.
Integrating multi modal therapeutic strategies helps entrepreneurs and executive leaders navigate executive dysfunction, overcome ADHD related burnout, and implement clear, sustainable boundaries.
Through an honest, collaborative environment, I partner with business owners to clarify strategic priorities, unpack chronic stress, and restore confidence in their leadership capability.
What sets our practice apart from other Atlanta therapy providers for business owners and entrepreneurs
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Deep understanding of the Atlanta market and leadership landscape. At Steady Hope Counseling, we recognize that launching, scaling, or managing an organization in a fast paced market brings a distinct set of pressures. We help local founders and executives navigate high stakes risk, investor dynamics, and board oversight without judgment, treating operational success and personal well being as complementary goals.
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Relational, somatic, and trauma informed expertise. Moving beyond basic executive coaching or surface level stress management techniques, our clinicians integrate specialized modalities including EMDR, Attachment Based Therapy, Internal Family Systems, and Polyvagal Theory. This helps to target founder burnout, chronic tension, and high anxiety directly within the nervous system.
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Discreet, highly confidential, and business aligned care. Protecting your reputation and professional standing is paramount when leading a company. Although there is no shame in seeking help, our Atlanta practice provides a secure, private environment with flexible scheduling designed to accommodate unpredictable calendars, pitch meetings, and heavy travel demands.
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Targeted support for diverse leadership identities and transitions. Navigating venture capital rounds, planning an exit, stepping into parenthood, or managing the distinct pressures faced by female, BIPOC, and neurodivergent entrepreneurs requires an approach tailored to your exact lived experience both inside and outside the boardroom.
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Focus on sustainable boundaries and personal relationships. Carrying the ultimate responsibility for a company frequently strains home life and drives isolation at the top. We equip you with actionable strategies to establish firm professional boundaries, separate your personal identity from performance metrics, and protect your primary relationships.
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Intentional, high touch clinician matching. We carefully pair you with a therapist whose clinical specialization, personality, and background align directly with your leadership style and personal goals, establishing a strong therapeutic partnership from your very first session.
Why Waiting to Start Therapy Keeps Business Owners Stuck
When you build or lead a company, it is easy to normalize constant pressure, erratic sleep, and baseline anxiety as simply part of the job.
You might tell yourself that stress is temporary, that things will calm down after the next quarterly push or funding round, or that carrying the full weight of the organization is just what leadership requires.
Ignoring chronic entrepreneurial stress rarely works over time. Without dedicated support, the mental and physical toll of running a business accumulates, making daily operations both inside and outside the office increasingly difficult to sustain.
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Your Nervous System Remains Locked in Fight or Flight
High stakes financial decisions, market volatility, and personnel challenges keep your nervous system on constant alert. Operating without intentional nervous system regulation leaves your body trapped in survival mode, turning routine workplace decisions into overwhelming hurdles and minor operational setbacks into major crisis points. -
Founder Burnout and Fatigue Become Your Baseline
Pushing through exhaustion without targeted coping strategies eventually leads to severe mental fatigue, cynicism, and physical burnout. Over time, the vision and passion that initially drove you to launch your venture erode, leaving you feeling detached, unmotivated, and operating on empty. -
Isolation and Perfectionist Expectations Deepen
Entrepreneurial culture often glorifies non stop hustle while treating vulnerability as a liability. Postponing therapy allows severe isolation at the top, imposter syndrome, and harsh inner criticism to take root, convincing you that acknowledging personal struggle is a sign of weakness rather than proactive leadership care. -
Personal Relationships and Family Life Take the Hit
High pressure business demands frequently spill over into your home life, leaving partners, children, and close friends to bear the brunt of your stress. Deferring therapy keeps you trapped in a cycle of emotional withdrawal, distraction, or irritability at home, causing deep strain in your most valuable personal connections. -
Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms and Blurred Boundaries Take Hold
To manage constant anxiety and heavy responsibility, leaders often turn to temporary numbing strategies like alcohol, compulsive overworking, or complete social isolation. While these habits offer short term relief, they ultimately increase emotional distress, compromise physical health, and blur the line between your personal self worth and business performance metrics.
Taking action does not mean compromising your ambition or losing your competitive edge. Engaging in confidential therapy provides you with the practical tools and emotional space needed to safeguard your well being while continuing to build and lead a successful organization.
