Amanda Shirley is a Board-Certified Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner, with experience in providing treatment for a wide variety of mental health concerns including personality disorders, PTSD, and mood and anxiety disorders. Amanda offers services that include psychotherapy, medication management, DBT, EMDR, and group therapy.
Prior to joining Union Square Practice, Amanda worked for five years at NYU Langone Health as a Registered Nurse in Inpatient Psychiatry serving a wide range of severe and persistent mental illnesses.
Amanda’s roots are in humanistic-existential psychotherapy. She works to develop a strong therapeutic relationship with each client in a warm, open, and non-judgmental space.
What should I expect in our first session?
I respect my clients as the experts on themselves, and I use therapy and mediation management to help them set and work toward their own goals. I think of the first session as establishing the warm and non-judgemental therapeutic partnership that will continue throughout our working relationship.
How long have you been practicing? What has your counseling experience been like?
I have been in psychiatry for nearly a decade, first as a Registered Nurse, and then, since 2022, as a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner.
What’s the most rewarding part of your job?
Watching my clients meet their goals! While I very much enjoyed my time as a psychiatric nurse, most relationships were brief and meant to stabilize people who were in crisis. As a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner, I get to be that part of a person’s community — and that is truly an honor.
In another life, if you weren’t working in counseling, what would you be doing?
I would be pursuing singing and creative writing. I think both foster a strong connection with others, and that is what I am most passionate about
What’s something your clients might be surprised to learn about you?
I sing in a cover band! My favorite bands I’ve covered are Aerosmith, Guns n’ Roses, MCR, and Paramore, and am currently learning guitar.