Susannah Van Dyke 
Licensed Marriage Family Therapist

I knew early on in my education that psychology was something of interest to me.  I obtained my Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Michigan State University and shortly after obtained my Master of Arts degree in Psychology with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy from Chapman University. 

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I started my career working as an intern at Veterans Village of San Diego, a residential drug and alcohol treatment center for veterans.  I worked closely with veterans struggling with addiction, homelessness, and mental illness.  As time went on, my focus shifted, and I began working with combat veterans suffering from PTSD, moral injury, depression, anxiety, anger, suicidal ideations, and addiction.  My sixteen year career at Veterans Village of San Diego has progressed from an intern to a mental health case manager to a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who oversaw the combat track; all while maintaining individual therapy with hundreds of combat veterans.

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For the past ten years, I have been a member of the Veterans Treatment Court (VTC).  This is a collaborative court that prioritizes treatment over incarceration for veterans and active-duty service members with criminal convictions and unique mental health conditions stemming from their military service.  I began working with the VTC as a therapist for some of the participants and in the last five years I have served as a member of the treatment team for all the participants.  The treatment team consists of members from the Superior Court, District Attorney's Office, San Diego City Attorney’s Office, San Diego County Probation Department, the Defense Bar, which includes the Public Defender, the San Diego Vet Center, the Department of Veterans Affairs as well as a group of Veteran mentors who volunteer their time.

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I am certified in Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) and Grief Counseling and have been trained in Shame Counseling, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Mindfulness and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I).  I specialize in trauma with an emphasis on addressing sleep issues and addiction.  I also have significant experience working with Bipolar I and II disorders, depression, anxiety, co-dependency, anger management and stress reduction.  I take pride and possess a strong sense of honor in being of service, to those that have been of service.  I am excited for the opportunity to continue to work with veterans while remaining open to working with all populations as I believe in the benefits of therapy for everyone. 

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My approach is to meet you where you are at, and then work together as a team to create personalized goals and solutions.  I would be honored to work with you and be a part of your healing journey.