Patricia Musselwhite-Weaver, Ma, Lmhc

Life is very complex and sometimes you don’t know exactly what to do with what’s going on.  Old issues that were not treated or addressed, relationships or work stressors, issues with disabilities or addiction – all of these, if left untreated, begin to chip away at your life as you find no relief, no outlet or a person to help you. For some it’s a giant step to be willing to talk to someone who wants to listen.  To seek relief, education and compassion is a big and important beginning towards starting the healing process.  Sometimes its old childhood problems such as sexual or physical abuse, abandonment or neglect, that have shaped your life, and you need someone to listen to you and a place to feel safe.  Many aspects from your past that you have suppressed may make you feel like a walking time bomb and feel like you’re waiting to explode.

Patricia Musselwhite-Weaver is a Sarasota mental health counselor who offers counseling and education to clients whether they are children, adults, elderly or disabled.  She is licensed to do psychotherapy for depression, grief, anxiety, stress reduction, anger management, and relaxation therapy.  Patricia is experienced in helping clients adjust to their physical disabilities or chronic illnesses and provide pain management.  Patricia is an expert at helping her disabled clients apply for resources and especially for Social Security Disability benefits.

Patricia’s office is a calm and peaceful place with a quiet ambiance – a safe place to talk about your fear and anger.  She makes her schedule fit around your needs, offering daytime, evening and weekend appointments.  She accepts 100% IBE and most insurance plans, including military and veteran’s benefits.  When I asked her where she begins to help relieve people’s symptoms and give them direction with their treatment, she told me that the central issue in many cases is the education piece, where people need to understand the process of recovery.  They need a compassionate person to empower and give them a voice, and that is the beginning of healing old wounds.

Patricia was born and raised in Minnesota where she completed her bachelor’s degree at the University of Minnesota.  She then lived in Mexico for 5 years and is fluent in Spanish.  She moved to Sarasota in 1980 and completed her Master’s Degree in Rehabilitation Counseling at the University of South Florida.  Her master’s research thesis was “Female Victim’s Perception of Relationship Between Spouse Abuse and Alcohol Use.”  She` ran a safe house for adult victims of childhood abuse and has worked with ex-inmates from prison.

Patricia has seen and heard most everything from her clients, so don’t think anything you tell her will be shocking.  In providing a safe place to let go of fears and really talk about what has happened in the past and what will happen now is a gift you will experience under the guidance of Patricia Musslewhite-Weaver.  Anything you tell her is held in the strictest of confidence.

Patricia is married with grown children and two grandchildren.  Her original life plan was to become a veterinarian but in her day, discrimination against women was allowed.  Friends later dared her to enter graduate school in Mexico and she took a year of psychology classes.  People in her life kept pointing her in the direction of counseling and she followed that path.  It seems like a perfect fit, as she has been in practice and helping people for over 30 years and she loves her career.

Her office is located at 7012C South Tamiami Trail in the Pine Park Centre, south of Gulf Gate Pavillion on Highway 41, across from the Mazda dealer.  Please call her at 941-922-6404 to schedule an appointment.  The direction of your life can be changed by entrusting your care to Patricia-Musselwhite-Weaver, an important member of the International Barter Exchange.