The Human Behind
The Therapy
Where Your Story Meets Support
Meet Kelsey
Owner and Therapist of KMV Therapy and Consulting, PLLC
Who I am
Hi, I’m Kelsey McVey, LCSW—therapist, writer, recovering high achiever, and someone who firmly believes that you can be both wildly competent and completely overwhelmed at the same time. (Ask me how I know.)
Most of the people who find their way to my virtual office are ambitious, thoughtful, high-achieving humans who look put-together on the outside but feel exhausted, anxious, or one life transition away from Googling “Is the universe against me?” You are my people.
My work centers on helping adults untangle the burnout, perfectionism, anxiety, and life transitions that tend to sneak up on those of us who are very good at holding it all together. Therapy with me is collaborative, warm, direct, and grounded in evidence-based approaches—CBT, ACT, DBT, ERP, mindfulness, and other modalities I’ve spent the last decade training in and actually using with real humans in real high-pressure situations.
How I got Here
My path into this work was shaped by years in fast-paced clinical environments, higher education, and behavioral health systems—settings where real people show up with real struggles, often during pivotal moments in their lives. I’ve supported individuals in crisis, helped build anxiety-focused treatment programs, trained future clinicians, and worked behind the scenes to make mental health care more accessible and effective.
Over time, one thing became clear: people don’t just need support during emergencies. They need a space to understand themselves, their patterns, and their limits—before everything hits a breaking point. That’s ultimately what led me to create KMV Therapy & Consulting, PLLC: a practice focused on helping high-functioning, overwhelmed humans recalibrate, breathe, and build lives that match who they’re becoming.
How I Work
Therapy with me is active, collaborative, and grounded in evidence-based approaches like CBT, ACT, and ERP. I’m not a head-nodder or a “tell me more about that… forever” kind of therapist. I bring structure, strategies, and curiosity, and I work with you to figure out what’s underneath the anxiety, the overwhelm, or the patterns that keep repeating.
Our work together is a partnership—an ongoing conversation where we combine your lived experience with my clinical expertise to build skills, challenge unhelpful cycles, experiment with new ways of responding, and increase your capacity to navigate whatever life throws your way. I’ll support you, ask thoughtful questions, offer direction when needed, and help you move toward lasting change in a way that feels grounded and doable.
Outside the Therapy Room
When I’m not meeting with clients or writing about the messy-but-human parts of growth, you can find me traveling back to Wisconsin to spend time with family, exploring new coffee shops, or settling into a good book that has absolutely nothing to do with psychology. I believe in practicing what I teach. Rest, boundaries, and creating moments of actual enjoyment in a world that doesn’t slow down on its own.
Education
Master of Social Work | University of Maryland, Baltimore | 2015
Bachelor of Arts, Sociology | University of Colorado | 2010
Licensure
North Carolina | C014885
Maryland | 20884
Wisconsin | 12645-123
South Carolina | 1570
(https://llr.sc.gov/sw/)
Florida | TPSW1121