Samantha Hellberg, PhD
About Me
I am a licensed clinical psychologist in the state of Washington and am credentialed with PSYPACT to provide virtual care in 40+ states. I also serve as the Associate Director of the Marsha M. Linehan Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Clinic at the University of Washington.
Clinically, I specialize in anxiety, OCD, trauma/PTSD, grief and emotion dysregulation. I have expertise in reproductive psychology–which means I work with individuals experiencing mental health concerns related to the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, postpartum, perinatal loss, infertility, and other reproductive stressors. I am committed to providing services that are personalized, culturally-responsive, and research-based. I have over 7 years of experience and have provided individual, couples, and group services in range of settings, including outpatient, intensive (IOP), and inpatient clinics. My orientation is cognitive-behavioral and I have intense training in various evidence-based treatments, including comprehensive Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), the DBT Prolonged Exposure (DBT PE) Protocol, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), Integrative Behavioral Couples Therapy (IBCT), Prolonged Exposure (PE) and Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for PTSD.
I completed my PhD under the mentorship of Dr. Jon Abramowitz, an expert in anxiety, OCD, and stress, and reproductive mental health experts at the world-renowned UNC Center for Women’s Mood Disorders. I have received grant funding, authored book chapters, and published peer-reviewed research articles in these areas. To further my expertise in trauma/PTSD and DBT, I completed my residency and an advanced fellowship at the Seattle VA under the mentorship of Dr. Melanie Harned, the treatment developer of DBT PE. I was coded to adherence for my delivery of DBT + DBT PE and demonstrated fidelity to expert adherence raters in DBT, DBT PE, and PE.
My ultimate goal is to increase access to effective, compassionate care. In addition to therapy, I provide consultation and training for clinicians, trainees, and organizations in topics related to reproductive mental health, trauma, anxiety/OCD, and DBT–including feedback on DBT adherence (DBT AC-I). I am passionate about enhancing clinician wellbeing and preventing burnout, and love working with healthcare providers in my clinical and professional practice.
My Education
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I completed a 1 year fellowship in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) under the mentorship of Dr. Melanie Harned, the creator of the DBT Prolonged Exposure (DBT PE) protocol for PTSD. During my fellowship, I received advanced training and supervision in DBT and DBT PE, while contributing to clinician education, consultation, and research efforts at the Seattle VA.
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I completed my 1 year Predoctoral Internship in Clinical Psychology at the Seattle VA. During internship, I received advanced training and supervision, with an emphasis on couples therapy, trauma-focused treatment, intensive outpatient services, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT).
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I completed my Masters and PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill under the mentorship of Dr. Jonathan Abramowitz, where my training emphasized research and clinical care for anxiety, trauma, and obsessive-compulsive related conditions. Throughout my training, I also completed research and clinical training in reproductive mental health with the UNC Center for Women’s Mood Disorders, under the mentorship of Drs. Crystal Schiller and Tiffany Hopkins.
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For two years, I served as the Program Coordinator for the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Anxiety & Traumatic Stress Disorders (CATSD) and Complicated and Grief Program.
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I began my training in psychology at Wesleyan University, where I graduated with University Honors and High Honors in Psychology.
Selected Trainings & Certifications
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40-Hour Foundational Training in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
Behavioral Tech; Katie Dixon-Gordon, PhD & Sami Saghafi, PsyD
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4-Day DBT-Prolonged Exposure (DBT PE) for PTSD Intensive
Melanie Harned, PhD, & Annie McCall, MA
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3-Day Getting to Adherence in Dialectical Behavior Therapy Workshop
Melanie Harned, PhD & Sara Schmidt, PhD
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Assessing and Treating Race-Based Traumatic Invalidation
Melanie Harned, PhD & Natalia Garcia, PhD
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Troubleshooting Lack of Improvement in DBT PE
Melanie Harned, PhD
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Prolonged Grief Disorder Therapy Principles & Procedure
The Center for Prolonged Grief; M. Katherine Shear, MD & Danielle Glorioso, LCSW
Book Chapters
“Trauma & PTSD in the Perinatal Period” in Women’s Mood Disorders.
“Phenomenology of Perinatal OCD” in Biomarkers of Postpartum Psychiatric Disorders
“From OC Spectrum to Anxiety Disorders” in Clinical Handbook of Anxiety Disorders
“Inhibitory Learning Approach to Exposure and Response Prevention for OCD” and “Couple-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for OCD” in Complexities in Obsessive-Compulsive Related Disorders
“Scrupulosity” in Advanced Casebook of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders
Research Contributions
I know research is critical to improving mental health care. I have contributed to over 30 peer-reviewed journal articles and 80 professional presentations, including research on dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), reproductive mental health, anxiety, trauma, grief, OCD, and suicide.
Here are a few recent examples of my work…
Hellberg S. N., Bruening A., Thompson K., & Hopkins. T. A. (2024). Applications of dialectical behavior therapy in the perinatal period: A scoping review. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy.
Riddle, J., Hopkins, T. A., Yeaton-Massey, A., & Hellberg, S. N. (2023). No Baby to Bring Home: Perinatal Loss, Infertility, and Mental Illness: Overview and Recommendations for Care. Current Psychiatry Reports.
Hellberg S. N./Coleman, J., Hopkins T. A., Thompson K., Bruening A., & Potter S. (2023). Understanding the multilevel effects of reproductive coercion on mental and physical health: an ecological model to guide research, clinical practice, and policy. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation.
Swales, D. A., Hellberg, S. N., Hopkins, T. A., & Schiller, C. E. (2023). Hiding in plain sight: Assessment and treatment of irritable mood during pregnancy and the postpartum period. Journal of Health Service Psychology.
Hellberg S. N., Lundegard, L., Hopkins, T. A., Thompson, K., Kang M., Morris T., & Schiller, C. E. (2023). Psychological distress and treatment preferences among parents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Psychiatry Research Communications.
Hopkins, T. & Hellberg, S. N. (2022). Assessing and Treating PTSD from Obstetrical and Neonatal Traumas: A Case Series. Journal for Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology & Health.
