ROBINSON, PA · TELEHEALTH STATEWIDE
Shelby O’Brien, MA, LPC
“I am the specialist on mental health and you are the specialist on yourself.”
Shelby O’Brien is a Licensed Professional Counselor at CPA Counseling’s Robinson Township office, also seeing clients by secure telehealth across Pennsylvania. She works one to one with late teens, young adults, and adults on anxiety, depression, trauma, ADHD, grief, anger, self-esteem, and life transitions — easygoing by design, with the client leading.
WHO SHELBY WORKS WITH
Who she’s for
Shelby works one to one with late teens, young adults, adults, and college students. She sees children too, though they are not who she is looking for. Individual therapy only, in person at Robinson or by telehealth across Pennsylvania.
why work with Shelby
You know yourself better than anyone
Her working premise: clients know themselves better than anyone, and her role is to help them explore their own thinking and arrive at realistic solutions that actually work for them. Collaborative in practice, not just in description.
HOW SHELBY WORKS
Seven approaches, and you choose the pace
Shelby uses a range of modalities and is explicit that clients take the reins. The method gets chosen for the person; the direction is yours.
CONDITIONS TREATED
What Shelby treats – who Shelby sees
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Trauma
- ADHD
- Grief & Loss
- Anger Management
- Life Transitions
- Controlling Relationships & Gaslighting
- Emotional Abuse
- Relationship & Marital Stress
- School / Academic
- Workplace Stress
- Self-Esteem
For younger clients
A calming presence — her clients’ words
“Together we can work to achieve your goals to a healthier version of yourself.”
CARE PHILOSOPHY
Easygoing. And you take the reins.
Easygoing is how Shelby describes her own style, and client-led is how she describes the method. She works from the premise that you know yourself better than anyone, which means the direction comes from you and the clinical skill comes from her — she is explicit about that division.
ABOUT SHELBY
Heard, seen, and accepted
Shelby O’Brien is a Licensed Professional Counselor with a master’s in Clinical Mental Health from Waynesburg University.
She has worked as a therapist since 2019 and became fully licensed in 2021. Before that, from 2016 to 2018, she worked as therapeutic staff support and as a mobile therapist while completing her master’s. Across her career she has worked with clients from age four through fifty, helping people manage anxiety, depression, anger, ADHD, grief, and life transitions, and process trauma.
Shelby works hard to provide clients with a space where they feel heard, seen, and accepted. She meets clients where they are and provides a safe space to explore their thoughts and feelings free from judgment. Her belief is that clients know themselves better than anyone — she is the specialist on mental health, and you are the specialist on yourself — so her role is to help you explore your own thinking and arrive at realistic solutions that work for your situation.
She describes her style as easygoing and lets clients take the reins, drawing on cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, client-centered, strengths-based, and solution-focused approaches. She has recently completed training for a trauma certification and has begun bringing somatic techniques into her sessions. She is a conversation-driven therapist and uses self-disclosure to help normalize what clients are going through, believing they deserve to know something about the person they are working with.
She sees clients at the Robinson Township office and by telehealth across Pennsylvania.
Working Since
Licensed 2021 · individual therapy
Client-Led by Design
You take the reins
Personalized Care Plans
No program commitments required
CONDITION GUIDE
Therapy guides from Shelby O’Brien
Family
Coping with Your Kids: Parenting Stress & Support
Parenting is demanding, and feeling overwhelmed doesn’t make you a bad parent. Coping well means protecting your own well-being, keeping routines, staying patient through big feelings, and asking for help when you need it. Support for parents is a strength, not a failure. Amber Kottner, LPC helps parents and families across Pittsburgh’s South Hills.
Depression
The Power of Positivity (Without the Toxic Kind)
Positivity isn’t about forcing happiness or ignoring real problems — that kind of "toxic positivity" tends to backfire. Realistic positivity is a trainable skill: noticing what’s genuinely good, building on your strengths, and practicing gratitude, often alongside therapy for depression or anxiety. It’s a complement to treatment, not a replacement. Rachel Nash, LPC, MAC helps clients across Pittsburgh’s South Hills, in person or by telehealth across Pennsylvania.
Children & Adolescents
Should You Take Your Kids Out of School for Therapy?
Taking a child out of school occasionally for therapy is usually worthwhile — a child’s mental health is as legitimate as their physical health, and most parents wouldn’t hesitate to miss class for a dentist appointment. Try to minimize disruption with after-school slots, telehealth, or rotating times, but don’t let a missed class stop a child from getting help they need. Shannon Wyzkoski, LPC and the CPA team support children and families across Pennsylvania.