Our Providers
MEET OUR PROVIDERS
Our therapists serve clients in Wasatch and Summit counties along with neighboring communities in the Wasatch back.
Shawn Michael Miller, PhD
Dr. Miller’s academic credentials are supported by nearly 20 years of clinical and youth advocacy experiences in higher education, community-based programs, and private inpatient residential care settings. He has been serving the Heber Valley since December 2011.
Areas Of Advanced Training Relate To:
- Children/Adolescents/Families
- Anxiety Reduction/Meditation Techniques
- Depression
- Autism Spectrum Disorders
- Vocational Issues/Career Development
- Couples Therapy
- Psychological Assessment
- Performance Enhancement
- Trauma Recovery
Dr. Miller’s achievements in clinical, academic, outdoor and personal enthusiasms contain the following threads:As a whole, these skills and abilities would be highly valued in larger metropolitan areas, but are even more critical when made available to individuals residing in a rural area. There is no need to burden yourself more by having to drive several hours to get the excellent service and treatment you deserve. Complimenting his professional endeavors is a rich outdoor life including skiing, kayaking, biking, and tennis. In addition, he finds great pleasure and personal growth in cooking and working on automobiles.
His achievements in clinical, academic, outdoor and personal enthusiasms contain the following threads:
- Extending himself with personal growth challenges
- Seeking out others with specialized proficiency and knowledge
- Assimilating new knowledge and competencies through curiosity, perseverance and a strong personal belief that he can accomplish a task
- An openness to new experiences and an eagerness to learn from others
He accepts most major forms of insurance and is willing to work with individuals on a sliding scale for those currently not covered by a health insurance plan.
Christian H. Monson, PsyD
(not accepting new patients)
Dr. Christian H. Monson joined Solstice Counseling & Wellness in the fall of 2013.
Dr. Monson received training and has been employed by psychologists, mental health institutions and hospitals throughout the nation. Dr. Monson spent 6 years in Indiana where trained with a renowned psychologist in an ADHD diagnostic and treatment center, as well as the privilege to assist with a NIH funded research project exploring the effects of mindfulness on eating disorders. He then moved to Pennsylvania where he worked with physicians in a large hospital. This included pre-surgical mental health evaluations and working with a well-respected forensic psychiatrist. Before coming to Heber, he founded a psychological testing clinic in Idaho.
These opportunities have given him a wide range of experience and knowledge including, but not limited to:
POPULATIONS
- Children, Adolescents and Adults
- At-risk Youth
- Couples and Family Therapy
- Court-Ordered Therapy
DISORDERS
- ADHD diagnostic & Treatment
- Anger Management
- Developmental Delays
- Depression
- Autism
- Mood Disorders
- Anxiety
When not assisting his clients, Dr. Monson can be found skiing, hiking, geo-caching, rappelling, helping his children with homework, or praying that the plant he just pulled from his wife’s garden really was a weed. It is Dr. Monson’s belief that treatment needs to be custom tailored for each individual. He has a great passion for integrating each client’s interests, relationships, spiritual beliefs, and/or hobbies into their treatment plan in order to help the client achieve and maintain psychological well-being.
Dr. Monson is a firm believer of being pro-active and has been selected as a delegate to meet with senators and congressmen in Washington DC on several occasions to discuss legislative measures pertaining to mental health as well as therapeutic recreation.
Dr. Monson accepts most major insurances; for those without an insurance plan, a sliding scale fee is available.
Justin Martel, M.S.
Justin Martel joined Solstice Counseling & Wellness in the summer of 2022.
Justin is delighted to be joining Solstice as a clinical intern as he completes the final year of his PhD from the University of Florida. Justin comes to Solstice with 4 years of experience working with various clinical populations in counseling and sport psychology settings. As a doctoral fellow, he researched the interface of mental health and sports psychology services of student-athletes. These topics are both professionally and personally close to his heart as a former Division I athlete and amateur golfer. He finds freedom and solace in the outdoors and can usually be found spending time playing with his Lab; Cubby, strength training, or working at his golf game.
Individual Counseling
Justin believes we all possess inner capabilities that will lead toward growth but that environmental and contextual factors can act as barriers in its pursuit. Through exploring inner experience, setting goals, and engaging with discomfort, we can identify and move past those roadblocks. He works primarily from a client-centered and humanistic perspective with empathy and trust as a foundation of the therapeutic relationship. Once rapport is established, true growth begins. His work with every client centers around their present goals and concerns. From there, the impact of past relationships and experiences is considered, as well as the client’s personal values. His hope is that clients will leave therapy with a better understanding of themselves and feeling a clearer sense of direction in their lives. He has extensive experience working with teen and adult populations presenting with a variety of concerns.
Sports Psychology Services
Similar to his therapeutic approach, his services in sport psychology rely heavily on the openness and transparency of the relationship and goal-oriented change. As a former collegiate athlete, he understands the rigors and demands of elite athletics and uses a client-centered approach to help athletes identify potential barriers to the various performance issues they may be facing. Some of the most common barriers include performance anxiety, motivational decline, negative self-esteem/beliefs, and attentional issues, empowering clients to recognize their autonomy in making choices aligned with their values. He enjoys working with athletes and performers across all domains and recognizes that peak psychological performance characteristics do not discriminate between sports.
Doctoral psychology interns, such as Justin, have extension training and experience as they enter their internship year.
