Meet Dr. Matthew Paris, a clinical psychologist and cofounder of Guiding House

Dr. Matthew V. Paris lives in Stark County and is a clinical psychologist at Guiding House LLC in Jackson Township. He and his wife Janelle opened Guiding House in November after having many discussions of how they could improve the quality of services to clients and caregivers, and improve their own self-care.

“Many caregivers, therapists, doctors, or teachers come home exhausted and don’t have quality time with their loved ones, which can make them vulnerable to burnout, anxiety and depressive symptoms,” Paris said. “The Guiding House was my wife’s idea and she is the driving force behind it. She designed the offices, created the website, logo, and business cards, hired staff, left a job/place she loved, and so much more. She makes everyone feel like they are important and loved. Janelle is a licensed professional clinical counselor (LPCC), and she provides therapy for teenagers and adults.”

Paris graduated from Walsh Jesuit High School. He earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from The Ohio State University and his doctorate in clinical psychology from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology.

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He and Janelle have a son (Grant), two daughters (Gabby and Julia), two dogs (Manny and Snoopy) and a bird (Opal).

“Like many others in the helping profession, I became interested in mental health because of the impact of a loved one who had bipolar disorder and a personality disorder. I wanted to understand why the person acted that way, what could help them, and how to help people like me who experienced chronic stress from the relationship,” Paris said.

After graduating college, Paris worked at a residential facility for adjudicated delinquents. He completed a testing practicum at a hospital in Gary, Indiana, two practicums at inner city hospitals in Chicago and an internship at a residential facility for teenagers with severe emotional and behavioral problems.

He worked at a federal prison and also a private practice before moving back to Ohio. He completed disability evaluations for one year and then worked at a large, community mental health center as a psychologist and clinical director for mental health and addictions services for seven years.

Would you share with readers what Guiding House is about?

We wanted a place where people wanted to go to get help and helpers felt supported by owners because constant relocation from clients and/or helpers negatively impacts treatment. We wanted to improve the quality of services to clients, accommodate their needs, and offer timely consultations and even same-day appointments.

We created a therapeutic environment that is different from most therapy offices, one that is welcoming, comfortable and makes you feel safe.

We wanted to provide new approaches to treatment, such as virtual reality interventions for a number of psychological conditions and interactive psychological testing so that many of the tests can be interpreted in the office the same day.

What are some of the types of counseling a psychologist does?

Psychologists provide individual, family or group psychotherapy to treat relationship problems, addictions (substance abuse, gambling, and video-game addiction), eating disorders, underachievement, anger, grief and trauma.

Many psychologists can perform psychological testing to assess for intellectual functioning, learning disorders, ADHD, autism, personality disorders, memory/cognitive impairment, etc. They are asked to determine fitness for duty, fitness to stand trial/sanity, pre-employment work screenings, suicidal or homicidal assessments, short and long-term disability and worker’s compensation evaluations.

Would you share some of your thoughts on mental health in Stark County?

Although I have only worked in Stark County for a little over one year, I am very impressed by the breadth of mental health services and the number of providers in this area.

However, like most others, Stark County has more people seeking services than providers. Some providers have an eight-week waiting list.

What are some ways you take care of your mental health?

I try to lower my physiological anxiety and depressive symptoms by exercising, hiking, being outside, and with relaxation techniques. I truly accept I have these symptoms, educate myself on them, and look for ways to manage and improve them, rather than shame or blame myself, complain or avoid them.

Talking about my symptoms to others helps me with full acceptance, keeps me focused on my symptoms on a daily basis and often helps others, which makes me feel good.

I also create natural situations that cause anxiety and focus on stress tolerance in these situations. I try to work through anything from the past that is frequently on my mind. I have seen a psychologist, taken an as-needed medication, and also taken a daily medication to help lower my baseline symptoms.

I know the importance of human connection and try to spend as much quality time with my loved ones when I am not working. I also check in with my loved ones about my anxiety and listen to their feedback.

I try to restructure negative thoughts, prepare for stressful situations, practice better ways to communicate with others and address problems with others when the time is appropriate, not when someone is emotionally charged.

Why is taking care of one’s mental health important?

If one does not take care of their mental health, it can cause serious problems in their work, relationships, performance, and physical health and could lead to addictions, financial problems, unemployment, injuries and accidental death, disability, legal problems and suicide or homicide.

No one should be ashamed of having mental health problems or getting treatment for them.

Editor's note: Five questions with ... is a Sunday feature that showcases a member of the Stark County community. If you'd like to recommend someone to participate, send an email to newsroom@cantonrep.com.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Five questions with Dr. Matthew Paris, cofounder of Guiding House