Maddie Straup, PhD

Hello and welcome. Thank you for visiting my page. This page details who I am, my approach to therapy, and what you can expect from our work together. I am a Postdoctoral Fellow under the supervision of Drs. Carla Pulliam and Zane Dodd. The process of beginning or re-engaging in therapy can evoke a range of emotions – maybe uncertainty and apprehension or hope and curiosity. Regardless, the connection you feel with your therapist is a vital component to the therapeutic process. If you would like additional clarity to decide whether we would be a good fit, I am happy to have a brief phone consultation to learn more about what brings you to therapy and to further discuss my approach to the therapeutic relationship.

Understanding how we relate to others—and to ourselves—is at the heart of psychological growth. Our ability to form healthy connections, cultivate a compassionate, self-aware relationship with ourselves, communicate authentically, and navigate emotional landscapes shape every aspect of our lives, from relationships to self-esteem. Because we as humans are relational in nature, both our past and present experiences in relationships impact our development and overall well-being. Through a collaborative style, and wide range of clinical experiences, I hope to help you more fully know and understand yourself to produce more empowering and enduring changes that help you live a more fulfilling life.

I completed my PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of North Texas and predoctoral internship at the VA North Texas Health Care System in Dallas, Texas. Through these experiences, I have had the opportunity to work with clients of diverse backgrounds and identities, ranging from adolescents to adults across the lifespan. I have learned many modalities and interventions to assist clients with a variety of concerns such as isolation and loneliness, trauma, substance abuse, personality disorders, anxiety, depression, anger management, emotional avoidance, low self-esteem, role transitions, multicultural and identity concerns, relational concerns, insomnia, chronic pain, and building distress tolerance. Although I take a more relational and emotion-focused approach to therapy, I also enjoy integrating various evidence-based interventions when needed (e.g., cognitive behavioral therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, interpersonal therapy).

I view therapy as an open, non-judgmental, and safe space to process one’s experiences, thoughts, and emotions, as well as a space to develop tools and skills to better address the problems in one’s life. I prioritize meeting you where you are, respecting your intersecting identities, and helping you navigate the path of where you want to be. I place particular focus on developing a strong therapeutic relationship based in warmth, empathy, compassion, and unconditional acceptance. By creating a secure and collaborative environment, I hope to encourage curiosity and exploration, as well as the development of a supportive relationship that values authenticity, self-reflection, self-expression, and mutual commitment to growth. This process can lead to increased well-being and resiliency.

Fun Tidbit: In my free time, I enjoy traveling, exploring new restaurants and coffee shops, watching Netflix, being in nature, and spending time with my partner, family, and friends.

Contact:

Drstraup@TheChrysalisCenter.com

(817) 349-2888

1130 N. Kimball, Ste 120, Southlake TX 76092

Populations Served

I have worked with teens, college students, veterans, and adults with concerns that include, but are not limited to:

  • Emotional distress and mood disturbances
  • Identity concerns and exploration (e.g., race, gender, sexuality, religion, etc.)
  • Anxiety and Depression
  • Recent trauma or trauma histories
  • Interpersonal difficulties (e.g., boundaries, conflict, etc.)
  • Grief or Loss
  • Struggles with life transitions (e.g., job shifts, adjustment to college or life after
    college, motherhood, military to civilian life, health conditions, retirement, end of
    life, etc.)
My Approach to Therapy

My approach to therapy is integrative and collaborative. I work with clients to identify their needs and goals, acknowledging they are the expert of their own experiences. I strive to create a space that respects and honors each client’s experiences and autonomy – a space where they feel truly seen and understood, supporting their journey toward deeper self-awareness and meaningful reflection. I believe people grow and flourish in the context of their relationships. I believe early childhood relationships and life experiences impact how we navigate current relationships and respond to life struggles. Therefore, I often utilize psychodynamic approaches to evoke curiosity about the influence of past relationships and relational patterns on client’s current behaviors, thoughts, and emotions. Within the therapeutic relationship, I collaborate with clients to identify maladaptive patterns or aspects of their lives that may be impacting their well-being, and to develop alternative thoughts and behaviors that foster healing, personal growth, and a more fulfilling life. Once we hone in on interventions that best meet your needs and goals, I can integrate various evidence-based methodologies to help you address your concerns. My therapeutic style tends to be more conversational and fluid, creating a space for open exploration of a wide range of topics. I tend to place particular emphasis on the relationship between the client and I, using that connection to help guide us toward a more healing, informative, and supportive experience.

What You Can Expect

We will work as a team to create a therapeutic relationship built on mutual trust, respect, and safety. This involves close collaboration with each client to help them determine goals and concerns that are most meaningful to them. Therapy can be incredibly challenging, as we discuss topics that may be difficult or not yet explored, but can also prompt meaningful and powerful insight and change. Through this process, my aim is to offer a supportive environment where you can safely explore and process difficult emotions and experiences. Over time, this can foster increased resilience, a greater sense of empowerment, and the ability to build deeper, more meaningful connections with others and yourself.

In our initial sessions, I will want to hear about your story and what brings you to therapy. Our sessions will then be focused on helping you address your needs through different counseling techniques. It is important to note that each therapy process takes on its own unique course and experience. You can expect a therapeutic approach that is individually tailored to your needs and honors your feedback and input. Your goals and presenting concerns will guide our work together. Therapy is an ongoing collaborative process that leaves room for goals and interventions to change or pivot. We will typically meet once a week, or more or less frequently depending on your needs. I will listen to your concerns and provide feedback and insight on my understanding about the sources of your struggles. We will periodically evaluate how you are doing, and tailor your goals accordingly.

Education
  • 2025: PhD. In Clinical Psychology, University of North Texas
    • Dissertation Title: Examining the Role of Emotion Dysregulation in the
      Association Between Interpersonal Trauma and Impulsivity
  • Predoctoral Internship at the VA North Texas Health Care System (APA Accredited)
  • 2019 – 2022: Master’s in Clinical Psychology, University of North Texas
  • 2014 – 2018: Bachelor’s in Psychology with honors, Southwestern University
Training and Experience
  • My doctoral training program was a generalist program in which I received experience treating a wide range of clients with various presenting concerns through multiple modalities including individual, group, and couples therapy, as well as psychological testing and assessment.
  • I completed my predoctoral internship at the VA North Texas Health Care System in Dallas, Texas, a hospital setting that serves Veterans in the DFW community. Through this internship, I received generalized training that focused on meeting the needs of Veterans and their families that included interventions focusing on depression, anxiety, PTSD, insomnia, chronic pain, life transitions (e.g., homelessness, dementia, retirement, civilian life), relational issues, suicidality, and emotion regulation. I participated in four rotations throughout my training including a PTSD specialty clinic, general mental health outpatient clinic, homeless residential program, and a community living center that provides short- or long-stay nursing home care. Additionally, I completed several comprehensive psychological assessments for ADHD, personality disorders, psychosis, autism, and differential diagnoses.
  • I have worked in multiple placements throughout my training, notably the substance use rehabilitation program at the VA North Texas hospital, a training clinic on a college campus, and two private practices.
Research

My research interests broadly include cultural influences of traumatic experiences and PTSD symptomology, risk and protective factors for the development of PTSD, and trajectories of posttraumatic stress symptoms. I have also engaged in a number of other research contexts on topics such as relationships and communication (e.g., gendered expectations of [mis]understanding on stress; how children’s love languages are influenced by their parents), cognitive processing and meaning making of stressful events, decentering and perspective taking, and the impacts of attachment style on processing a romantic breakup. I strive to continuously connect and integrate my research with my clinical work, especially regarding traumatic impacts on psychosocial functioning, to inform my clinical practice and to help me create a therapeutic space that invites healing and connection.

Publications

Contractor, A. A., Slavish, D. C., Straup, M. L., & Miguel-Alvaro, A. (2024). Daily-level associations between posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and reactions to retrieving positive autobiographical memories. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 103, 102842. Advance online publication.

Jenkins, S. R., Shamji, J.F., Straup, M. L., & Boals, A. (2023). What is expressed in expressive writing: Narrative processes differ for low closure interpersonal and impersonal stressful events. Traumatology. Advance online publication.

Straup, M. L., Prothro, K., Sweatt, A., Shamji, J. F., & Jenkins, S. R. (2022). Coping strategies and trauma-related distress of college students during Covid-19. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory, & Practice, 1-18.

Jenkins, S. R., Shamji, J. F., Straup, M. L., & Boals, A. (2022). Beyond traits and states: Interpersonal decentering is also activated social information processing. Personality and Individual Differences, 186, 1-6.

Straup, M. L., White, J., Butterworth, S. E., Dunn, D. S., Tate, K. E., Guermeur, A. S., & Crockett, E. E. (2019). I knew you’d understand: How gendered expectations of understanding affect stress. Personal Relationships, 26(4), 544-565.

Matthews, S. J., Giuliano, T. A., Thomas, K. H., Straup, M. L., & Martin, M. A. (2018). Not cool, dude: Perceptions of solicited vs. sext messages from men and women. Computers in Human Behavior, 88, 1-4.

Presentations & Trainings

Poster Presentations

Straup, M. L., & Jenkins, S. R. (2023). Meaning making surpasses LIWC in breakup narratives predicting depression. Poster presented in person at the 2023 Society for Personality Assessment convention.

Straup, M. L., & Jenkins, S. R. (2022). LIWC versus interpersonal decentering from breakup narrative and their relationship to depressed mood. Poster presented at the 2022 Society for Personality Assessment convention.

Straup, M. L., Laajala, A., Prothro, K., Sweatts, A., Shamji, J., Fondren, A., Jenkins, S. R. (2021). Use of social support with Covid-19: A mixed methods approach. Poster presented virtually at the 2021 Society for Personality Assessment convention.

Straup, M. L., & Jenkins, S. R. (2020). The centrality of relationship scale: A measure of engagement with romantic relationships. Poster presented at the 2020 Society for Personality Assessment convention.

Straup, M. L., & Jenkins, S. R. (2020). Implicitly measured self-definition and social definition relates to self-reported personality. Poster presented at the 2020 American Psychological Association.

Crockett, E., White, J., Butterworth, S., Montreuil, O., Straup, M. L., & Dunn, D. (2019). I knew you’d understand: How gendered expectations of understanding affect stress. Poster presented at the 2019 Society for Personality and Social Psychology convention.

Matthews, S. J., Thomas, K. H., Straup, M. L., Martin, M. A., & Giuliano, T. A. (2017). Not cool, dude: Perceptions of solicited vs. unsolicited sext messages from men and women. Poster presented at the 63rd annual meeting of the Southwestern Psychological Association, San Antonio.

Lorenz, H., Straup, M. L., Gonzales, M. A., & Giuliano, T. A. (2016). Be yourself! (or your mom): Parents’ and offspring’s love languages. Poster presented at the 62nd annual meeting of the Southwestern Psychological Association, Dallas.

 

Invited Talks

  • Carroll Medical Academy Career Day
  • February 2023
    • Invited to speak to high school students on an advanced curriculum about medical service fields and opportunities alongside other medical professionals
  • Transgender Education Workshop
  • February 2023
    • Presented on demystifying transgender identities through scholarship, modeling dialogue, and facilitating conversation as part of the St. Martin’s in the Fields grant.
Affiliations
  • International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS)
  • Society for Personality Assessment (SPA)
  • American Psychological Association (APA)
Recognitions & Awards
  • The North Texas HRSA Fellowship
  • July 2023 – July 2024
    • Awarded $25,000.00 for pursuit of clinical practice focusing on substance abuse treatment and telehealth practices
    • Competitive fellowship granted by UNT Clinical Psychology Program through Health Resources and Serves Administration (HRSA)
  • Outstanding Thesis Award
  • May 2023
    • Awarded $150 by the University of North Texas
  • Top Psychology Student Award Finalist
  • January 2018
    • Top senior psychology major who had one of the top-ranking GPAs
    • Nominated by the Psychology Department at Southwestern University
  • Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society
  • May 2017 – May 2018
    • Member of society dedicated to celebrating excellence in the liberal arts and sciences
    • Nominated by Alex Anderson, Associate Director of Career Services at Southwestern University, Georgetown TX
  • Psi Chi Psychology Honor Society December
  • 2016 – May 2018
    • Member of the international honor society for psychology Alpha Lambda Delta Academic Honor Society February 2015 – May 2018
    • Member of society focusing on recognizing and fostering high academic achievement (3.5 or higher GPA), developing leadership skills, and encouraging philanthropy
  • Dean’s List
  • August 2014 – May 2018
    • 3.6 GPA or higher
  • Southwestern University Academic Scholarship
  • August 2014 – May 2018
    • Awarded $25,000 towards tuition each semester over 4 years for academic achievement in high school