Sam Wilshire is a Pittsburgh-based licensed clinical social worker who brings a diverse background to his clinical practice and consulting work. For the past 5 years, he has worked with individuals and groups, helping them to overcome personal struggles, relationship issues, life transitions, and mental health conditions.
Sam began his people-work as an age group and developmental swim coach. His curiosity for addressing technical barriers to optimal performance brought him to his first experiments addressing dysregulation. The immediate tactile experience of cueing swimming technique was an essential component of his learning in biofeedback skills
In sessions, Sam employs techniques from various modalities – psychodynamics, parts work, mindfulness-based – tailored to each client’s needs. He helps clients build self-awareness, develop healthy coping strategies, change counterproductive thought patterns, and find depth in their everyday lives.
Having benefited personally from mindfulness practices like meditation and contemplation for over 15 years, Sam integrates these tools where appropriate. He is an advocate of holistic health, addressing the interconnectedness of mind, body and spirit, with a special focus on where these distinct parts meet: the human nervous system.
His work with high performance professionals uses biofeedback skills as the cornerstone of an empowerment-based treatment. With the demands of life impinging on nearly every capacity of the human organism, using tools to address dysregulation at the nervous system and cardiopulmonary level is a simple and effective way to kick-start personal growth. The goal is a brief treatment that helps to make life more therapeutic than therapy.
In addition to psychology, Sam reads extensively on philosophy, self-actualization theories, and the human quest for purpose and meaning. He brings an inquisitive, source-focused approach to his sessions, empowering clients to challenge assumptions and build lives aligned with their core values.
When he is not counseling, you can find Sam reading, gardening, and spending time with family.