BIO: Dr. Byars was born and raised in Georgia. She came to North Carolina for college and fell in love with the state. After completing her doctoral degree in New York City and post-doctoral training in Ontario, she was lucky enough to return to North Carolina to put down roots. When not in the office, Dr. Byars enjoys discovering new hikes, traveling, trying new creativity-focused hobbies (current hobbies include painting and crafting), and spending time with her husband, daughter, and their pets.

 

TRAINING: Dr. Byars completed her undergraduate degree with honors in Psychology at Davidson College here in North Carolina. She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from CUNY's Graduate Center. During her time in graduate school, Dr. Byars obtained expertise in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), particularly with young adults (18-30). She completed her pre-doctoral internship in a large, public hospital system (St. Joseph's Healthcare in Hamilton, ON) where she received dual specializations in mood dysregulation and unusual experiences (e.g., psychotic symptoms). During her post-doctoral training, Dr. Byars continued her training in DBT and received specialized training and supervision in Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) with individuals with traumatic experiences and PTSD. 

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EXPERTISE: Dr. Byars has expertise in mood disturbance, with particular interest in mood dysregulation (moods that are intense and shift quickly), which may be found in borderline personality disorder. As part of this expertise, she treats self-injury and suicidality and traumatic experiences, which may co-occur with mood disturbance. Dr. Byars also has expertise in unusual experiences as part of mood or anxiety episodes (e.g., hearing voices, paranoia, or dissociation). She has a particular passion for working with individuals struggling with perfectionism and shame. Dr. Byars uses self-compassion to help these individuals reduce self-criticism, self-doubt, and perfectionistic standards and to live as their authentic selves. She also serves as TAP's Director of Training, which includes a practicum training for doctoral candidates from the UNC Clinical Psychology program and a postdoctoral fellowship program.

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EVIDENCE-BASED THERAPIES OFFERED: DBT, Self-compassion Informed Therapy, CBT, Trauma Therapies

          

POPULATIONS SERVED: Dr. Byars sees adults (ages 18+) in both individual and group therapy.  She the developer and leader of the Emotional Resiliency Group. 

Dr. Byars does not see children or adolescents and does not do couples or family work.