Find a Therapist in Colts Neck, NJ

My approach in therapy is collaborative, supportive, and goal oriented.

As a Rapid Transformational Therapist , I'm passionate about helping individuals rewire their brains to project positive images and words. I believe in the power of beliefs—first you make your beliefs, and then your beliefs make you. My mission is to empower others to break free from limiting beliefs and unlock their true potential. I chose to become an RTT therapist because I find the approach both creative and innovative, and I'm excited to work with clients to help them improve their lives. I can help you identify and overcome negative thought patterns that may be holding you back. By becoming more attuned to your beliefs, you can create a brighter, more positive future for yourself. Let's work together to unleash the best version of you!

Dr. Spada is a gestalt psychotherapist catering to New Jersey where she runs her own practice. She is uncompromising in her dedication to the well-being of her clients. Her practice philosophy is to provide holistic and evidence-based care that is respectful of the concerns, values, and aspirations of her clients. She believes in empowering her clients to achieve their greatest potential. A well-trained professional, Dr. Spada earned her master's degree in social work from the State University of New York, Stony Brook. She also holds a Ph.D. in social work from Adelphi University. Dr. Spada's sound clinical knowledge and passion towards her work are commendable and make her a valued asset in her practice. She has an individualized approach to patient care and carefully considers all aspects of her patient’s physical and mental health in the interest of properly treating them. Dr. Spada has a passion for creative and deep-reaching individual and couples therapy and does her best to motivate people to live their best lives.

If you're ready to better understand yourself, break free from self-doubt, and create a life that feels more authentic, therapy can help. Together, we'll explore how your past experiences have shaped your thoughts, emotions, relationships, and sense of self. My goal is to help you develop emotional maturity, strengthen self-awareness, and learn to embrace the present instead of living in anxiety or fear of what might happen. You'll gain practical tools to set healthy boundaries, prioritize your own needs without guilt, and build a life guided by your values rather than your fears. My work is grounded in a person-centered approach. I believe you are the expert in your own life, and my role is to walk alongside you with curiosity, respect, and honesty. Therapy with me is collaborative and conversational. It does not have to feel stiff or clinical. Growth can include insight, practical tools, and even moments of humor. My goal is to help you feel more confident, grounded, and aligned with the version of yourself you want to become — not a “perfect” version, but a more authentic and self-assured one.

My approach to helping is collaborative. I hope that you and I can work as a team to explore your thoughts, feelings, behaviors, relationships, and family history. I want us to understand your needs, triggers, strengths, and coping strategies. I not only want to understand your past, but see how you manage your daily life and reach future goals. I am an interactive therapist. I want you to feel heard, understood, and respected. Therapy is not easy and we will have to face your struggles. Therefore I want you to feel safe and comfortable. I work with honesty and transparency. We will evaluate your progress to make sure that you are working in the direction of your goals and my approach fits you. I believe therapy works best if it's consistent and weekly. With effort and determination you are likely to see positive results.

Most therapists will smile, nod, and ask, “How does that make you feel?”—but if that actually fixed the problem, you wouldn’t still be looking for someone who gets it. I believe people come to therapy because they’re tired of feeling alone with their struggles, not because they want a scripted response. My specialty is addiction recovery, but I’ve learned over the years that addiction rarely travels solo. It brings along old wounds, shame, anxiety, depression, relationship stress, and the feeling that you’re supposed to hold everything together on your own. My approach is steady, honest, and human, and I meet you where you are. I don’t offer cookie-cutter advice or quick fixes. Therapy with me is about uncovering the resilience you already have—even if you’ve stopped believing in it. Whatever you’re facing—addiction, relationship pain, or something you can’t yet name—I’ll meet you there with honesty, compassion, and zero judgment.

You've probably been holding it together for a long time. Managing the job, the relationships, the responsibilities, the version of yourself that everyone else needs you to be. And you're good at it. That's actually part of the problem. High-functioning doesn't mean fine. It means you've gotten very good at keeping the harder stuff out of sight, including from yourself sometimes. And at some point, that stops working. The anxiety bleeds through. The relationship hits a wall. The transition you thought you were handling turns out to be bigger than you expected. Or you just wake up one day and realize you've been running on empty for longer than you can remember. That's usually when people find us. I'm Manuela Correia-Guerra, a licensed professional counselor, approved clinical supervisor, and the founder of MVCG Psychotherapy Services in Spring Lake, NJ. I've been doing this work for nearly 20 years, and what I've learned is that the people who are hardest to help on paper are often the easiest to work with in the room. Sharp, self-aware, motivated. They just need someone who won't let them intellectualize their way around the actual work. That's what we do here. At MVCG, I've built a close-knit team of clinicians who share the same core belief: that real change requires more than coping strategies and a sympathetic ear. It requires honesty, clarity, and a willingness to look at the things you've been carefully not looking at. We work from a person-centered foundation, which means you lead and we follow your pace. But we're not passive. We'll ask the questions other people won't. We'll name the pattern you've been living inside of. And we'll stay in it with you until the work is actually done. My own approach is shaped by Carl Rogers and Gestalt therapy, which is a long way of saying I believe deeply in your capacity to figure this out, and I'll be direct with you while you do. Not harsh. Not clinical. Direct. There's a difference. We see clients in person at our Spring Lake, NJ office, serving Monmouth and Ocean Counties, and via telehealth throughout New Jersey. We specialize in anxiety, high-functioning anxiety, trauma, life transitions, depression, attention-deficit hyperactivity (ADHD), couples and marital counseling, caregiver support, and men's mental health. We accept most major insurance plans, including Aetna, Cigna, Horizon BCBS, Optum, Oscar, Oxford, Meritain, and UnitedHealthcare. If something here sounds familiar, that's not an accident. Reach out. We'll take it from there.

Many of the people I work with are thinkers, caretakers, or high achievers: the ones who analyze everything, show up for everyone else, or keep pushing toward the next goal. Somewhere along the way, that stopped being enough. My training is existential and influenced by Jungian thinking. In practice, that means I care about what your life means to you, the choices you’re facing, and the whole of who you are, including the parts that don’t make tidy sense. Hardship reaches everyone. In my experience, the people who spend their energy dodging it often end up living at a smaller scale than they were built for. I’d like to help you build the courage to see yourself honestly, so that fear stops making your decisions. Some pain can’t be solved. It can only be faced. I work with adults who are carrying a loss or a reality that won’t change: a death, a relationship that ended, a family that split apart, an illness that redrew the future, a child they hoped for, or a life that took a different shape than the one they worked toward. Together we build the steadiness to hold that pain without letting it run everything, so there’s room for sorrow and joy in the same life. Outside of sessions, you’ll find me baking sourdough, watching sci-fi and thrillers, and holding on to the punk energy of my years in a band. I laugh at myself easily, and I’d say it’s a healthy habit. I don’t aim to make you more ordinary or fit you into a template. I bring over ten years of clinical experience, steady attention, and a firm belief that whatever surfaces in our work, however strange or hard, has meaning and deserves to be taken seriously. I’m also a certified Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga facilitator (TCTSY-F). It’s a research-supported, body-based approach for people whose trauma lives more in the body than in words, and when it fits, I can bring gentle, choice-based movement into our sessions. Therapy with me suits you if you’re curious, can tolerate complexity, and want to understand yourself. If you’re looking for a quick repair. I may not be the right fit. If you’d like company while you work out who you are, I’d be glad to meet you. I see clients online across New Jersey and New York, and in person for walk-and-talk sessions in Long Valley, NJ. Visit Person to Person Psychotherapy and Counseling for more information about my practice: https:www.person2persontherapy.com

If you are here, something in your life probably is not working the way you want it to. Maybe the same argument keeps happening in your relationship. Maybe stress from work or family keeps following you home. Or maybe you just know you are capable of living better than the patterns you are currently stuck in. That is where our work begins. My approach is direct and collaborative. Instead of endless "how does that make you feel" conversations, we focus on what is actually happening in your life, identifying the patterns, understanding what is keeping them in place, and building practical ways to move forward. People come to me as individuals, couples, parents, and families dealing with real-world challenges: relationship stress, family conflict, life transitions, and the pressure of trying to hold everything together while still showing up for the people who depend on you. I have been doing this work for over two decades and I still genuinely love it. Not because the problems are easy, but because people are more capable of change than they usually give themselves credit for. My job is to help you see that and build on it. If you are ready to stop managing the same patterns and start actually changing them, reach out. The first conversation is free.

I am looking for a client that is struggling with some life issues and wants a professional to help him or her see what might be going on. Life is hard and if you are seeking help for mental health, you are strong and resilient. I would like to be able to help you by listening, understanding and forming a treatment plan of your goals . We can also do screenings to see if you have a certain diagnosis such as depression or anxiety. Let’s work together to see what we find together.

I am at ease in treating adults with stress, trauma, anxiety and depression; and I bring a sense of calm and presence to difficult conversations, always looking for the opportunity for clients learning, growth and improvement regardless of the circumstances.

Feeling more like a passenger than a driver on life's journey is a common experience, especially when the path you're on doesn't align with your goals. The overwhelming stress and anxiety you feel may stem from trying to meet expectations that no longer serve you, leaving you feeling stuck and uncertain about how to move forward. Reaching out for support is a courageous first step toward feeling better. Imagine finding the clarity and peace you're seeking, allowing you to focus on your own needs and goals. Together, we can explore the patterns in your life and equip you with proven techniques to help you thrive rather than just survive. Our sessions are a partnership, honoring your past while energizing your present to create a better future. I provide both in-person and telehealth sessions for residents in New Jersey. If you're ready to start your journey toward personal growth and a more meaningful life, please feel free to email or call me today.