Meet the Team

Elise Waszczak (pronounced VA HZ-check) is from a west Texas border town, and received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Texas at El Paso. Elise served in the nonprofit world for years, with AmeriCorps and the YMCA. While completing her master’s, she counseled young adults in a college counseling center, and since graduating, she has worked mostly with adults addressing trauma, depression, anxiety, and everyday stress. She briefly worked at a psychiatric hospital before moving to Austin in 2017 to work at a correctional facility, where she has had exposure to working with those with acute mental illness, and has primarily focused on crisis management. She has also coordinated groups for those who are repeat offenders and/or struggle with substance use and anger management.

Elise is family-oriented and has always prioritized the importance of relationships. However, as a licensed professional counselor, she provides a safe place for you to work on your most important relationship—the one you have with yourself.

Elise’s theoretical orientation is eclectic and pragmatic. Since her work in the nonprofit world, Elise spent many years observing behaviors, and is skilled at thinking objectively, which helps her to embrace both the positive and negative characteristics of a person in order to promote greater wholeness. She has seen how everything is connected, and that our thoughts, as well as various environmental factors, can influence our feelings and behaviors. Elise believes people can change, and she is honest and transparent as she works with clients to uncover the motivation that comes from within. She knows people have a capacity for goodness and can use their negative emotional experiences for personal growth. Elise is determined to help you confront your struggle, to help you leave the past behind, and to be fully present.

Elise specializes in the following:

• Anxiety and Stress

• Anger Management

• CBT

• Crisis Management

• Depression

• Divorce

• Grief and Loss

• Mindfulness

• Mood Disorders

• Substance Use

• Trauma and PTSD