Meet the Team: Lindsey Mandell, MA, LPC
As one of the newest members of our psychiatric team, Lindsey Mandell has worked in some pretty challenging roles. That includes serving as a clinical supervisor and clinical therapist at the Detroit Behavioral Institute (DBI), a 98-bed residential facility for teens with felony criminal backgrounds.
At DBI, one of the only facilities in the nation that provides psychiatric counseling for adjudicated youth, Mandell worked with children and teens, ages 12 to 19, from across the country with convictions for felonies including homicide, domestic violence, sexual assault, and assault and battery. She was also assigned several state ward children and those who were neglected or abused with severe behavioral or emotional disturbances. Mandell provided individual therapy twice per week per child, family therapy once a month, and group therapy five days a week.
She joined the Rochester Center for Behavioral Medicine in late October after a stint as a behavioral health consultant for Meridian Health Plan of Michigan.
Mandell, 30, has an extensive background in therapy. She began her career in 2009 doing internships and volunteering at a rehab center for abused and neglected children at Henry Ford Hospital in West Bloomfield. Mandell got her first job at New Oakland Child-Adolescent and Family Center in Farmington Hills, working in a partial hospitalization program and, later, outpatient therapy. From there, she moved to DBI.
“Working with teens with criminal backgrounds was an incredible experience,” Mandell says. “But, I felt a strong pull to return to therapy. I knew I needed a little bit of a break, a relief from the felonies and stuff. It was really intense.”
Mandell is accepting patients of all ages but has a particular passion for working with teenagers.
“As a clinician, I can offer unconditional positive regard, I accept them for wherever they are in their process,” she says. “So if they’re coming in and they’re very much motivated to work on themselves, that’s where we start. If they’re coming in and their parents are really pushing them to see a counselor, I’m going to start where they are. If they’re hesitant or not really sure, I’m going to ease them into it and meet them where they are instead of making them feel pressured or uncomfortable.”
Mandell earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology with minors in interpersonal communications and vocal performance from Oakland University. She received her master’s in counseling, with an advanced specialization in mental health and psychosis, also from OU.
She is trained and certified in dialectical-behavior therapy, which encompasses emotional regulation, interpersonal skills, mindfulness, coping skills, and stress tolerance. Mandell also likes to encourage patients to express themselves creatively.
“I love to use art therapy in my sessions to provide a different perspective and creative outlet for my patients,” she says. “I use it in all different areas: building self-esteem, identifying self-worth, coping skills, behavioral modifications, etc. There are certain hot-button topics that may be difficult to talk about, so art therapy addresses difficult areas in a creative and expressive way.”
When she’s not at work, Mandell enjoys cooking, spending time with family and friends and singing, indulging a lifelong love that harkens to performing in musical theater and plays as a child.
To make an appointment, contact us at (248) 608-8800 or email info@rcbm.net.
