Amy Wood, Psy.D. is a psychologist  with deep knowledge of human nature and a gift for helping adults become their own versions of successful.  Having worked with clients ranging from seriously disturbed psychiatric patients and incarcerated criminals to community leaders and corporate executives, she knows how people handle obstacles and how they change.   No matter how complex the challenge, Amy has helped someone through it – all from the empowering perspective that every individual, regardless of circumstances, is a unique and valuable individual with the inner resources necessary to articulate and accomplish their goals.  She facilitates growth and development through speaking engagements, writing, consulting, and one-on-one sessions.  Amy is the author of Life Your Way:  Refresh Your Approach to Success and Breathe Easier in a Fast-paced World and co-hosts the teleshow Your Money AND Your Life. She is often featured in media ranging from local newspaper, radio, and TV to national radio and popular magazines like Parade and Women’s Day.

Professional Style: Amy is a keen observer of strengths and is highly skilled at drawing out the best in her clients.  She is aware as a human development expert that past experience shapes people, but she believes that more can be accomplished by putting energy and insight into making new plans and moving forward rather than endlessly processing.  Amy is very straightforward, conversational, and commonsensible in her approach, and often uses humor in her work.  She is especially good at helping people to envision clear futures for themselves and see through the clutter to find the best route to peace of mind.  Her focus is always on the positive, and she encourages acceptance of the repeated falling down and getting back up that is usually part of lasting change.   Clients describe her as:   easy to talk with, able to simplify complicated concepts, a person who “tells it like it is.”

Background and Education: Amy graduated from Loyola University in New Orleans in 1985 with a Communications degree, then enjoyed an invigorating magazine writing, design and marketing career in Chicago.    Fascinated by corporate dynamics and human behavior, she enrolled in Chicago’s Adler School of Professional Psychology at age 30 to become a psychologist.   She fell in love with Maine after completing her clinical internship at the University of Maine counseling center and launched her practice in Portland in 2001.  Firmly rooted in the conviction that once you think you know everything, you know nothing at all, Amy consistently works at enhancing her skills and challenging her perspective through such professional development opportunities as certification by the College of Executive Coaching in California.  She contributes to her community and profession in a variety of ways, and is the founder of Success Starts With You, an annual professional development conference for women to benefit Dress For Success Southern Maine.   Amy is also a founder of the Speakers Cooperative, a collaboration of women authors specializing in motivational speaking.

Life Philosophy and Personal Interests : Amy owes her life successes to listening to and acting on her intuition – no matter how scary, far-fetched or downright crazy the instructions – and she encourages others to do the same.   A firm believer that she must practice what she preaches to do effective work, she strives to keep her life balanced, her personal relationships thriving, and her mind open.   She is an avid reader of motivational books, biographies, and mystery novels; a lover of fine food and good conversation;  and enjoys tennis, swimming, running, and skiing whenever possible.   She lives in Kennebunk, Maine with her husband, two step-children, two cats, and two dogs.