Services
Dr. Amanda Darnley
Owner
Licensed Psychologist
Child/Adolescent Specialist
Dr. Amanda (Banes) Darnley (pronouns: she/her) is a licensed clinical psychologist with over a decade of experience working with children, adolescents, and their parents in a variety of settings including inpatient hospitals, residential treatment facilities, and outpatient practices. She has a soft spot for ‘tweens, teens and new moms, and enjoys helping them navigate the transitions that are a hallmark of those developmental stages. Dr. Darnley’s warmth and gentle humor naturally create a nurturing space where her clients feel safe and supported.
Dr. Darnley wholeheartedly believes that it takes a village to raise a child and approaches therapy in the spirit of collaboration and connection- working not only with caregivers, but also community supports, other healthcare providers, and schools in order to best help the whole child. She creatively tailors proven interventions to meet the needs of the clients in her care. She considers helpful therapy to be one that simultaneously promotes acceptance and change.
In addition to her clinical work, Dr. Darnley holds a supervisory position at Horizon House residential services, where she leads skills groups and team consultations. She has previously supervised graduate students at Friends Hospital, where she created a therapeutic workbook that has been published and is now given to each patient upon admission.
Dr. Darnley received her BA with Honors from La Salle University. She completed her Master’s in Mental Health Counseling from Adelphi University and went on to become a licensed practitioner in the state of New York, where she developed and ran an outpatient program for adolescents struggling with addiction. Philadelphia soon beckoned again, and she returned to La Salle University to earn her doctorate in Clinical Psychology. She completed both her predoctoral internship and postdoctoral fellowship serving youth and families that have been significantly impacted by trauma.
In her free time, you can find Dr. Darnley enjoying the riverfront with her husband and son, or revving up her power tools to bring new life to old pieces of furniture.
Sarah Rot, MA, R-DMT
Creative Arts Therapist
Sarah Rot (pronouns: she/her/hers) is a compassionate dance/movement therapist with a wealth of experience providing creative art therapy to clients presenting with a wide range of concerns. In addition to delivering quality care through Chrysocolla Counseling, Sarah also devotes her time as a clinical specialist in a women's residential facility, where she leads Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) groups and conducts dance/movement therapy.
In her sessions, Sarah aims to support her clients as they gain awareness of the mind/body connection, and empowers them in working towards a positive and reparative relationship with themselves. She is a firm believer that everyone can benefit from moving their bodies; and is particularly passionate about holding space for young adults and prenatal/perinatal/postpartum women.
Sarah’s background in dance performance and teaching, coupled with her passion for helping others, led her to study and share the healing potential of movement. She is a graduate of the Dance/Movement Therapy and Counseling program at Columbia College Chicago. Sarah is a registered therapist through the Dance/Movement Therapy Credentialing Board, and is working towards earning her license in professional counseling and becoming board certified. Sarah has conducted research on potential power disparities in the therapeutic relationship which is published in the American Journal of Dance Therapy. She now mentors and supervises dance/movement therapy students in the greater Philadelphia area.
When she is not moving and grooving with clients, you can find Sarah reading a good book, endlessly re-watching “Friends” episodes, or going for runs around the neighborhood.