Julianna Foster, MA

Hello! I specialize in adolescents, college students, young adults, and families struggling with emotion regulation, anxiety, mood disorders, behavior change, and life transitions – particularly related to overseas moves and foreign service lifestyles. I have significant experience using Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and I use these to teach coping skills, mindfulness practices, thought changes, and acceptance practices. I incorporate wellness education into sessions to support the connection between body and mind, and enjoy engaging in yoga, exercise, and nature as healing methods. I believe all clients have the potential to make the necessary changes they want to see for themselves to help their lives become more fulfilling and will help my clients use therapeutic techniques to set and reach their own goals.

I was born and raised in Western Pennsylvania and completed my undergraduate studies at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. I have a Master’s degree in Mental Health Counseling and Behavioral Medicine from Boston University School of Medicine. My prior work experiences include working in a DBT-adherent outpatient clinic and at McLean Hospital Psychiatric Inpatient Unit, and I have interned at an adolescent partial hospitalization program and an emergency services clinic. In addition to working with Virginia Family Therapy, I am currently a Health and Wellness Coordinator at the U.S. Embassy in Kigali, Rwanda.

I currently live in Kigali, Rwanda and provide virtual tele-therapy sessions to clients living throughout Virginia. I can be reached directly at jfoster@virginiafamikytherapy.com.