Dr. Risa Byars is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist with a private practice in Mount Pleasant, SC and a periodic contributor to the Charleston Mercury newspaper. She resides in Mount Pleasant, SC with her husband Mark, a yellow Labrador retriever named Charlie and an orange cat named Buck. Both Charlie and Buck like to work regularly alongside Dr. Byars, offering comfort and diversion to patients with regular doses of comic relief. Dr. Byars’ greatest passions are writing and travel, and she enjoys writing about her travel adventures as they relate to human emotion and spiritual enlightenment.
Dr. Byars has been in private practice since 2002. She earned her master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of Massachusetts at Boston, and her Doctorate in School-Clinical Child Psychology from Pace University in New York City.
Dr. Byars performed her clinical training with child/adolescent and adult populations at The Tufts University Counseling Center in Medford, MA, Queens Hospital Center in Jamaica, NY, The New Rochelle School District in New Rochelle, NY, and The Counseling and Substance Abuse Services Center at the College of Charleston in Charleston, SC.
Prior to beginning her private practice, Dr. Byars worked on the child/adolescent and adult inpatient units of the Medical University of South Carolina’s Institute of Psychiatry and Palmetto Lowcountry Behavioral Health Hospital. She also facilitated adult outpatient psychiatry groups and Drug/Alcohol Recovery groups at Palmetto Lowcountry Behavioral Health Hospital.
Dr. Byars specializes in helping people to Live, Dream, and Thrive, by teaching them to act authentically, trust their inner voice, honor their beliefs and values, and recognize their goals and dreams. Dr. Byars believes that when people learn to block out irrelevant stimuli from their environment, quiet their mind, and appreciate the gift of inner peace and stillness, they are able to listen more deeply to the voice of their soul and choose a life path that will ultimately lead to personal fulfillment and joy.
Dr. Byars is a past support group facilitator at the Center for Women in Charleston, SC and the former Executive Director for a nonprofit foundation called Postpartum Support Charleston. In addition to her work as a private practice clinician, Dr. Byars also conducts training programs, speeches and seminars on a wide range of women’s issues.
Dr. Byars considers herself a fantastically flawed late bloomer with many stories to share. It took her over 40 years to cross the bridge from restless longing to personal fulfillment in her own life and she is passionate about helping others to accomplish the same.