Morristown, NJ (November 25, 2020) – Dr. Meredith Gondo has successfully defended her dissertation at Saint Elizabeth University to earn a Psy.D. degree in Counseling Psychology.

As an individual who has an extremely strong interest in social justice, fighting against the stigma of mental health in America, and working with underrepresented populations, Gondo was drawn to those aspects in the SEU counseling psychology program. Her experience through the program allowed her the opportunity to work with the elderly, whom she plans to work with and advocate for in the future.

For her dissertation, "A Biopsychosocial-Spiritual Model of Chronic Pain in Adults", Gondo focused on chronic pain and the factors in life and spirituality that influence how pain is experienced. Using the biopsychosocial model, she was able to conceptualize pain and find evidence that spirituality did influence pain experience for some individuals. Gondo has suggested a biopsychosocial-spiritual model would be useful for clients to navigate through their chronic pain conditions.

Gondo hopes that psychologists can become more involved in the treatment of health conditions. She sees this happening by the growing practice of therapists promoting positive lifestyle choices, educating and supporting both patients and caregivers, all while addressing mental health concerns. Gondo has stated, "offering non-medical treatments for health conditions is one way to potentially reduce reliance on medications and perhaps encourage behaviors which might lead to improvements in health outcomes."

With so much physical and psychological challenges happening in our world today, her contribution to the field and to her clients will be most needed and welcomed.