Geri-Lynn Utter, PsyD, a Psychologist in Private Practice

Get to know Psychologist Dr. Geri-Lynn Utter, who serves patients in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. 

Dr. Utter is a clinical psychologist who works with individuals struggling with drug addiction and severe mental illness at her private practice in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. Her goal is to inspire communities, educational institutions, and individuals on how to overcome their past and create a healthy future.

“I’m the child of parents who suffered from drug addiction. I have also witnessed countless people who lived and died in my parents’ wildly dysfunctional and often criminal inner circle during my childhood in one of Philadelphia’s roughest areas” expressed the doctor.

Rather than joining in and using drugs and engaging in criminal behavior with her family, Dr. Utter went in the opposite direction; she knew she deserved a better life. Her experiences have left scars on her soul, but she sees them as marks of wisdom that have shaped her understanding of human behavior. She is the kind of person who tries to understand what makes people do the things that they do. That curiosity and desire to help others is what drove her to pursue her career as a psychologist.

A Philadelphia native, Dr. Utter graduated high school from Nazareth Academy High School in 1998. She then went on to earn her degree from Cabrini University in 2002. She followed this up with a Master’s degree in Clinical and Counseling Psychology and a Doctorate of Clinical Psychology from Chestnut Hill College in 2011 and 2016, respectively. 

Having conducted psychological evaluations for the Court on incarcerated individuals, Dr. Utter helps ensure they receive the appropriate mental health and drug and alcohol treatment, both during and post release from prison. Currently, she works on the Medical Affairs team for a small pharmaceutical company that specializes in manufacturing and developing medication designed to help individuals struggling with opioid dependence.

Moreover, she advocates and volunteers with non-profit organizations whose mission is to provide support and treatment opportunities for individuals struggling with polysubstance use disorders and severe mental illness.

Psychology is the science of behavior and mind. It includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, as well as feeling and thought. It is an academic discipline of immense scope. Psychologists assess, diagnose, and treat the psychological problems and behavioral dysfunctions resulting from, or related to, physical and mental health. In addition, they play a major role in the promotion of healthy behavior, preventing diseases and improving patients’ quality of life.

Long before she cracked a book on the subject, Dr. Utter’s view of addiction was formed by witnessing its effects on real people. The familial and personal challenges she was confronted with during her youth helped her become a clinician with rare, real-world insight into addiction. 

She is the author of “Mainlining Philly: Survival, Hope, and Resisting Drug Addiction”, which details the harrowing story of how Dr. Utter survived the grim alleys of Kensington and became a respected mental health professional. While the book is based largely on experiences and challenges that she faced in life due to her parents’ struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, she also offers clinical education through her personal story and that of her parents. 

Possessing a unique insight into the nature of addiction, Dr. Utter has the tools to offer solutions to those addicted and the families who love them. She has conducted an educational documentary about drug addiction and underlying psychiatric illness in an effort to de-stigmatize these disorders by spreading awareness and education.

Happily married, she currently resides in a Philadelphia suburb with her husband, Greg, and two children, Natalee and Gregory.

Learn More about Dr. Geri-Lynn Utter:
Through her findatopdoc profile, https://www.findatopdoc.com/doctor/82974263 or through her website, https://drgerilynn.com/ 

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