Elizabeth Abowd, MSW, LCSWA
Hello! I’m Elizabeth (she/her/hers) and I am the face behind (and in) Vibrant | Creative Life Solutions. My life changed when I was diagnosed with ADHD in graduate school. My diagnosis explained some of my previous challenges but also presented plenty of new ones. Even though I was getting my master’s degree in social work and knew lots of fancy clinical terms, it was hard to find treatment for adults, navigate my work accommodations, and explain that my ADHD was more than just being talkative!
After completing my MSW, I continued on the career path I had set for myself a decade prior: working creatively in residential care settings for people with multiple complex disabilities. Eventually, however, I realized that my insight into ADHD was pulling me in a different direction: ADHD folks needed someone like me! A therapist who really knows what it’s like—and knows that yes, exercise IS great, but it’s not going to make ADHD magically disappear. After working in a psychologist’s private practice, mainly administering psychological testing, I can now focus (ha!) on providing services for adults with ADHD!
When I am not busy being a therapist and consultant, I can often be found standing at my backyard window with a pair of binoculars watching the birds visit my many feeders or helping rehabilitate birds of prey as a volunteer at my local raptor center.
For those who like education, here’s what I’ve done:
- Bachelor of Science, Summa Cum Laude, Lesley University
- Major: Expressive Arts Therapy
- Minor: Psychology
- Specialization: Holistic Psychology
- Internships: Neville Place Assisted Living, The Carter School, VSA Massachusetts (Now Open Door Arts)
- Master of Arts Coursework, Lesley University (transferred to UNCC)
- Clinical Mental Health Counseling: Expressive Arts Therapy
- Internship: Arts for Life at Levine Children’s Hospital
- Master of Social Work, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
- Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management
- Internships: UNC TEACCH Autism Charlotte, Kids Path at Hospice and Palliative Care Charlotte Region