Tyler Ricks, a psychodynamic therapist based in Austin, TX, providing depth-oriented therapy for adults and teens across Texas.

I’m Tyler Ricks, a psychodynamic therapist based in Austin, TX, providing depth-oriented therapy for women across Texas. I specialize in helping young women of color heal from emotional neglect, chronic shame, negative relationship patterns, and reconnect with authentic emotional expression.

My Story

I wasn’t shy, but I was quiet. I hid behind books and found other ways to disappear, writing poetry, escaping however I could into worlds that felt safer than the one I was in.

I felt invisible and too visible at the same time. So I learned to hide myself, behind books, behind walls, behind whatever version of myself felt safest to show.

It worked, until it didn't. The more I disappeared, the further I got from myself.

I had a light in me. And for a long time, it was dim.

Everything changed when I found a therapist who saw past my walls and met me with patience, curiosity, and truth. For the first time I felt safe enough to stop pretending. Seen not as an "angry Black girl" but as a full, complicated, worthy human being.

That experience showed me what therapy can actually do when it goes deep enough. Not just help you cope, but help you understand yourself. Where you came from. Why you do what you do. How to find your way back to the person you were before the world told you to be someone else.

That's why I do this work. Because I know what it's like to be far away from yourself.

And I know it doesn't have to stay that way.

My work is grounded in warmth, depth, and real conversation.

I believe healing happens when we stop performing and start being known.

My Background

  • My experience includes:

    • Anxiety, overthinking, and emotional overwhelm

    • Depression, disconnection, and feeling numb or stuck

    • People-pleasing, perfectionism, and burnout

    • Low self-esteem, shame, and self-hatred

    • Harsh inner criticism and difficulty with self-compassion

    • Complex family dynamics, parent wounds, and going no-contact with family members

    • Recovery from emotional, physical, or sexual abuse

    • Narcissistic abuse and chronic invalidation

    • Dissociation, inner child work, and identity repair

    • Relationship anxiety, attachment wounds, and intimacy issues

    • Sexual trauma, sexual assault recovery, and sexual boundary violations

    • Therapy for individuals who have caused harm or seek accountability around sexual behavior

    • Porn addiction and compulsive sexual behavior

    • Body image struggles and disordered eating patterns

    • Grief, loss, abandonment, and enmeshment

    • Shame related to ADHD, identity, or emotional needs

    • Borderline personality traits and emotion dysregulation

    • Religious or spiritual trauma

    • Stress related to academics, career pressure, or being first-gen

    • Support for LGBTQ+ teens exploring identity and emotional safety

    • Therapy for neurodivergent clients (including ADHD and autism)

    • Support for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities

    Across all of these areas, my work centers on self-concept, relational safety, and emotional integration—helping clients move from survival patterns toward a deeper sense of authenticity, agency, and self-trust.

  • I earned my Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of Tennessee, where I trained in psychodynamic, relational, and trauma-informed approaches. As part of my clinical work, I provided over 700 hours of therapy within a university counseling setting, working primarily with college students and young adults.

    Many of my clients were navigating academic stress, identity exploration, people-pleasing patterns, and the emotional fallout of growing up in emotionally unsafe environments. I also led therapy groups focused on disability identity, healthy relationships, and self-advocacy for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

    This work deepened my belief that therapy isn’t just about coping — it’s about creating the emotional safety we never got. I continue to support clients who feel unseen, unheard, or unworthy of rest and softness.

    Currently, I’m in an ongoing consultation group studying NARM (NeuroAffective Relational Model), a therapeutic approach that focuses on repairing early attachment wounds and helping clients reconnect to agency, aliveness, and self-compassion. I’m also completing AEDP Level 2 training, where I receive continuous immersion in Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy through multi-day intensives every other month.

    Beyond formal training, I engage in weekly supervision and consultation to refine my clinical work and deepen my relational awareness. I regularly attend workshops on trauma, eating disorders, and psychodynamic practice, and I’m an avid reader of psychoanalytic theory and contemporary relational thought — always learning, reflecting, and growing both personally and professionally.

  • I'm a National Certified Counselor (NCC) and Licensed Professional Counselor Associate (LPC-Associate #99107) in the state of Texas, under the supervision of Dr. Jaime Telfeyan, PhD, LPC-S.

    I earned my Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where I focused on psychodynamic, relational, and trauma-informed approaches. I completed over 700 hours of direct clinical experience working with young adults navigating anxiety, attachment wounds, identity exploration, and complex trauma.

    Before that, I graduated summa cum laude (4.0) with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Kennesaw State University.

    In addition to my graduate work, I’ve received training in AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy), Motivational Interviewing, and crisis intervention, including certifications in Psychological First Aid and Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST).