Polly Charette

I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with more than 25 years of experience helping people heal from trauma, navigate major life transitions, and create meaningful change. I earned my Master of Social Work from Boston College and completed advanced clinical training at Butler Hospital, a psychiatric teaching hospital affiliated with Brown University. Much of my career has focused on serving active-duty military members, veterans, and their families, including helping to open and develop the Marietta Vet Center, a federal counseling center for combat veterans. I specialize in PTSD, complex trauma, traumatic brain injury, anxiety, chronic pain, and the lasting effects of growing up in alcoholic or dysfunctional families.

My approach is warm, genuine, trauma-informed, and tailored to the needs of each individual rather than based on a one-size-fits-all formula. I draw from EMDR, Brainspotting, cognitive behavioral therapy, somatic and nervous-system regulation techniques, Internal Family Systems concepts, and person-centered therapy to help clients understand both what happened to them and how it continues to affect their lives. I often use humor, metaphors, storytelling, and practical examples to make difficult concepts easier to understand and apply. I provide compassion and emotional safety while also offering honest feedback and gentle challenges that help clients move toward lasting change.

Your first session will be conversational and focused on helping you feel comfortable, understood, and confident that we are a good fit. We will talk about what brings you to therapy, what you hope to change, and any important experiences that may be affecting your life today. You will not be expected to share every detail or explore painful trauma before you are ready—we will move at a pace that feels safe and manageable. I often describe therapy as building a house together: during our first session, we begin creating the foundation and developing a plan that reflects your unique needs and goals.