Lana M. Ackaway, LCSW-R, CASAC

I am an empathic human being and a highly trained Certified Psychoanalyst, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, and Credentialed Alcoholism Counselor.  I help others manage and resolve difficulties of the heart — love, loss and work during significant life changes; for example, career change, death/illness in family, divorce, early “recovery,” relapse with addiction(s), criminal arrests, loss of work, etc.   I am committed to providing high-quality professional assessment and counseling/psychotherapy to people who have not accessed or have had prior unsatisfactory experiences with psychotherapy.  I am also committed to travel the lengthy road of psychoanalysis with people who want to take this voyage.

A second arm of my private practice is “Second Opinions”:  Some consumers are in a “stalemate” in their present “therapy”– where there is a serious impasse and “work” is forfeited.   I consult with individuals who can no longer productively work in their current therapy, oftentimes beginning to resolve major impasses.  On occasion, the individual’s therapist volunteers to be part of this process.   In some cases, fruitful work is resumed.  In other instances, a decision to leave the current therapy ensues.

My interest in psychotherapy is borne by helping clients learn about themselves in seeing things differently—not changing their world, but having new eyes.

By engaging in this process one finds obstacles in the past that impinge in reaching one’s full potential in the present.  Psychotherapy is helpful in working through such issues by addressing the underlying emotions and bringing them into awareness.  One may achieve a sense of inner peace and emotional freedom, making possible more fulfilling relationships with oneself and others.

A third arm of my private practice is assistance to criminal defense attorneys representing high-profile defendants in a variety of white collar crime (fraud, embezzlement, bribery, RICO, regulatory violations), controlled substance violations, weapons violations, and violent crimes.  I have also evaluated and testified in assault cases, domestic violation and complicated divorce proceedings.  I have prepared confidential psychiatric reports (writing without “psychobabble”) to aid with prepleading memoranda, helping individuals and attorneys have a win-win result.