ECC
...personal growth and relationship strategies for individuals, couples, and families
Our Team
As Edina Counseling Center continues to grow, new clinicians are being added. I have been careful in selecting a unified network of therapists and clinicians who, though they each may have different skills, styles, and areas of expertise, share core values dedicated to your success and personal happiness.
We are contracted with most insurance companies and EAP’s, we also offer private pay plans to suit every individual and family budget. Please contact us to discuss your needs and ensure coverage options when making an appointment.
Gina R. Schuchman, MSW, LICSW
Gina is the founder and Executive Director of Edina Counseling Center. Although now retired from active clinical practice, Gina is still active managing ECC and mentoring its clinicians.
Gina graduated from the University of Minnesota’s Masters in Social Work program in 1980. Gina started off working as a therapist in a pioneering program started by Patrick Carnes, treating incest families using a 12 Step recovery model. From there she worked with adults, couples, children, and adolescents as a family counselor in a psychiatric clinic and as a school social worker in Minneapolis Schools. For many years her private practice was housed in an OB-GYN clinic where she helped those struggling with infertility and pregnancy loss and adoption choices.
Over the past 20 years, she has focused on helping people make smart choices in relationships and has designed a program called I Date Smarter (www.idatesmarter.com) to help people make healthier and more informed choices.
In the past 10 years, Gina has completed training with Pia Mellody, clinical director at the Meadows in Arizona and author of Facing Codependence, in working to assist people to resolve childhood traumas towards a healthy recovery.
Gina’s style is to work with clients in an engaged and supportive relationship to discover what is getting them stuck in life and make permanent and profound changes to enjoy a happier and more peaceful life. She believes that we all are basically competent human beings who can struggle from time to time and get stuck in our lives. Relationships make the world go round and if we are stuck in that area of our lives it affects everything we try to do in life. With some help, we can all lead happy and productive lives full of respect for ourselves and others. Gina has worked with individuals, couples, families, and groups in our Edina office.
You can read her musings on this website and also subscribe to her Substack @ginarschuchman
Joyce White, Psy.D, LP
* Joyce is not accepting new patients at this time.
I graduated from the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology in Boston, MA in 1997. As a licensed clinical psychologist, life coach, and relationship expert, I have been helping individuals, couples, and families achieve healthier relationships with themselves and others. I have h helped clients improve their work lives through coaching, psychotherapy, and consulting for over 20 years. I have worked internationally and in the US in a variety of settings, ranging from mental health clinics, and holistic health practices with multi-disciplinary practitioners, to private practice.
Specialty Areas:
I specialize in working with individuals, families, couples, and groups and am well-informed on the latest attachment and trauma theories and practices and use these skills to assist clients in healing from family-of-origin trauma and/or dysfunction.
I have a strong interest and competence in diversity along with her international experience. I have a special interest and skills in parenting and helping parents navigate the school environment – especially for those with learning disabilities and other special needs.
As a couple’s therapist, I utilize Terry Real’s Relational Life Therapy model assisting people in building intimacy in relationships and teaching clients the skills necessary to have healthy relationships.
I also use Pia Melody’s work in relational recovery, as well as an eclectic tool bag of techniques, gathered over the years, to make a unique plan for each client.
Nidar Gauhar, MS, LMFT
I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who has 12+ years of diverse clinical experience working with individuals, couples, and families.
I use attachment, relational, and strength-based models to help clients feel safe, understood, and heard. I strive to help clients develop clarity about what they want, create changes, and empower them to maintain lasting impact.
Prior to joining the Edina Counseling Center team, I worked many years at the Center for Grief, Loss, and Transition working with clients around grief and loss, trauma, divorce/transitions, and various health-related concerns.
I have also worked closely with school districts as an educator, school counselor, and consultant for mental health-focused interventions for students and parents.
I currently contract with an Employee Assistance Program for a global technology company that provides stress management and wellness training, professional coaching, and consultation services to employees, leaders, and teams.
As a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, I am a firm believer in the power of a collaborative therapeutic relationship and approach my practice with empathy and humility. I consider it an honor to do this work.
Carolyn Disch, MSW, LICSW
My style as a therapist is authentic, compassionate, warm, and non-judgmental. I appreciate the meaningful role of humor and believe in the strengths of people and helping them look for the positives in life – even when they may be difficult to see.
Change is inevitable and often stressful and can be incredibly valuable to our growth.
I will listen to you with an open mind and make sure you feel heard. I will partner with you to collaboratively identify goals important to you and will share with you skills and life practices that will empower you to confidently face challenges as you evolve into the person you strive to be.
I have over 20 years of experience working with adolescents and adults with concerns such as anxiety, depression, ADHD, self-esteem, sexual and gender identity, life changes, grief and loss, relationship and family of origin issues, parenting stress, and many more.
I will integrate various therapeutic approaches to find what fits and works best for you. These may include breathing techniques, guided imagery, movement, emotional self-regulation skills, and mindfulness/relaxation/stress reduction skills.
Regardless of the techniques we employ along our journey together, I want to honor where you are and focus on a process that offers understanding and positive change.
Esther Vogelzang, MSW, LICSW
Hi, I am a Dutch LICSW, but have lived in the US for 20 years. I am bringing a ton of life experience to the field not only related to being a first-generation immigrant while having created a home away from home, adjusting to a new culture, starting a family, and becoming a parent of a child with special needs – but a lot more!
Life experience combined with a master’s degree in clinical social work has made me the therapist I am today. I understand and empathize with adults who struggle with depression, anxiety, interpersonal relationship challenges, life transitions, and PTSD.
It’s my privilege to assist people struggling with the aftermath of trauma by educating them on survival skills developed in childhood and labeling them as a strength. I enjoy introducing and guiding people to new ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving and the benefits of mindful living. I use an integrative mix of CBT, DBT, and motivational interviewing.
I am trained and certified in Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) and recently added the Advanced and Enhanced training. I have found this a very helpful modality particularly to use for single episode trauma. In addition to this, I have participated in a wide variety of training opportunities, such as Internal Family Systems, couples counseling, domestic violence, narcissistic abuse, grief, and loss.
I am familiar with the twelve-step program and believe that many people struggle with addiction and codependency traits as a result of growing up in dysfunctional families. I have been working in the mental health field for more than 10 years providing outpatient, day treatment, and rehabilitative services.
Lastly, I have a long-standing relationship with the Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota.
Heather Stras, MSW, LICSW
I am a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker with over 15 years of experience working with individuals, couples, and families.
My areas of focus are grief and loss, post-traumatic stress, anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, narcissistic personality disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, trauma, chronic disease, and small and big life transitions including transitioning to college, changing jobs, a new medical diagnosis as well as other life transitions.
In my practice, I use the “strength perspective approach,” which involves working collaboratively with clients to identify and build on their strengths, skills, talents, and hopes. I believe that everyone has unique strengths and abilities that can be used to help them overcome challenges and achieve their goals.
I skillfully make use of community resources to support clients as they face specific challenges and life transitions. Where appropriate, humor is often part of the therapy session.
John O’Brien, MSW, LICSW
I am a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker specializing in individual therapy for older adolescents and adults.
I specialize in psychotherapy treatments for depression, anxiety, grief and loss, anger and self-esteem concerns, and other adjustment problems. I enjoy working with couples, individuals and families.
John has over 20 years of clinical practice in a variety of settings including a community mental health organization, crisis programs, emergency rooms, and has also had experience working with individuals who have intellectual and developmental disabilities, including those on the Autism spectrum.
