Stacey Sugar approaches therapy with the belief that genuine growth starts with understanding who you are. With 14 years of clinical experience, she has observed that while each person is unique, many share a common experience: they are continually authoring their life story.

Stacey often finds that people assume their narratives are fixed, but she emphasizes that life is not linear and that it is possible to revise one’s perspective at any point. Although the past cannot be changed, shifting how it is understood and uncovering unconscious defenses can create insight into current patterns and open the door to meaningful transformation toward an authentic self.

She encourages taking time when entering new relationships to see how they feel, and she meets clients where they are, offering tools for self-exploration at a pace that feels safe and manageable. Stacey supports clients in finding the motivation and resilience needed to become more open and committed to the changes they want. In sessions she helps people attend to the full range of emotions, including feelings that may not yet be conscious, since bringing those elements into awareness often creates important “aha” moments that build self-understanding and move people toward living more fully.

Stacey works with concerns such as stress, anxiety, relationship difficulties, family conflict, intimacy-related issues, coping with life changes, addictions, LGBT-related matters, trauma and abuse, grief, anger management, self-esteem challenges, career difficulties, and depression. She is licensed to practice as a clinical counselor in both California and Maryland and brings 14 years of hands-on clinical work to her therapeutic relationships. For those ready to explore deeper change, she considers it an honor to join them in removing barriers that stand between current circumstances and their desired potential.