Mrs. Mitchener is a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner who joined The Pisgah Institute in 2008. Mrs. Mitchener enjoys working in multiple settings including a psychiatric crisis center as well as a substance-abuse and eating disorder inpatient and outpatient facility.  She also sees adult patients at The Pisgah Institute.  She treats a variety of psychiatric conditions including depression, anxiety, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, trauma, bipolar disorder, substance-use disorders, psychotic disorders, and personality disorders. Mrs. Mitchener attended The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill for undergraduate and graduate education.  Prior to moving to Asheville, she worked at Duke University Medical Center in the Neurological Intensive Care Unit and as a Neurology Research Coordinator.  Mrs. Mitchener has become a shareholder at The Pisgah Institute in 2018, serving in a leadership and practice management role. When not working, she enjoys many of the great Asheville restaurants, yoga, hip hop dance, and spending time with friends and family.

Dr. McKee is a psychologist who is dedicated to helping his clients work through their issues. He sees adults of all ages and children over the age of six years.  Dr. McKee sees each of his clients as a unique individual and therefore tailor makes his treatment plan accordingly. He is a Master Addiction Counselor and treats people with depression, anxiety, grief, post-traumatic stress disorder, and relationship issues that include romantic relationship problems and child-rearing problems. His style of therapy involves coaching techniques, cognitive-behavioral therapy, experiential therapy, gestalt therapy, and family-systems approaches. He has worked in a variety of settings and has taught at two universities. He has been licensed as a psychologist in three states and is past president of the Western North Carolina Psychological Association. Dr. McKee is dedicated to his profession and wants to bring out the best in his clients. He has worked in the field of psychology for over 30 years.

Mr. Johnson has been a psychiatric nurse practitioner for 15 years and in that time has worked with kids, teens, adults, and the elderly, in settings as varied as nursing homes, the VA hospital, and child residential-treatment units. He is particularly enthusiastic about working with people who, regardless of their age or diagnoses, enter treatment with an eagerness for change. Mr. Johnson’s own life story has included many distinct chapters, living in San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Seattle, Santa Fe, Boston (where he attended graduate school), and Asheville. Prior to entering medicine, Mr. Johnson spent his 20s and early 30s as a freelance illustrator and animator, winning awards and working for clients such as Microsoft and The New York Times. Now relatively settled in his life, Mr. Johnson shares his Swannanoa home with his family, which includes one son, two large hound dogs, and a rotating cast of neighborhood bears.

Dr. Jones is a clinical psychologist with over 30 years of experience. He earned his B.A. from Wake Forest University and his Psy.D. from Baylor University. He sees therapy as an invitation to explore how one’s past informs one’s present, how one’s internal life (thoughts, emotions, and aspirations) influences one’s external life (job, family, and friendships), and how one’s perception shapes one’s reality. He works with adults who are facing relationship difficulties, life transitions, losses, past or recent traumas, questions of meaning and purpose, end-of-life decisions, depression, and anxiety. He also works with couples to help them communicate with more understanding and empathy and to develop a more respectful, nurturing, trusting, and trustworthy relationship. Rather than relying on a single technique or perspective, he draws on various clinical approaches based on the unique personalities and circumstances of the client. In his spare time, Dr. Jones enjoys reading, watching movies, and live theater, hiking, and traveling.

Dr. John Donkervoet received his doctoral degree in clinical psychology from the University of Rhode Island in 1994 with an internship at the Medical University of South Carolina.  His professional education and training was heavily grounded in strong clinical practice work with children, adolescents, and adults.  John began his career working with families utilizing the Multi-Systemic Therapy model.  He was recruited to Hawaii in 1996 to serve as the Clinical Director for the Hawaii Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division. Subsequently, he became a Director of Psychology and Clinical Therapies at a private psychiatric facility on the island of Oahu. During this time, John provided treatment to youth with delinquency issues and their families, geriatric populations, individuals with substance abuse issues, as well as a variety of inpatient psychiatric child, adolescent, adult, and forensic populations. John has had a thriving private practice in Hawaii for  nine years.  John brings 25 years of experience working with adolescents, adults and families with complex challenges.  His practice currently specializes in work with individuals with personality disorders as part of a comprehensive Dialectic Behavior Therapy (DBT) program. John returned to the mainland (how islanders refer to the United States) from Hawaii to be closer to family, realizing his long term goal of living in the mountains so he can hike, bike, and canoe as often as possible.

Dr. Isakson Lyerly treats children, adolescents, and adults. She began her practice in the public school systems, state hospitals, and residential-treatment programs. She integrates several therapeutic approaches to individualize care, which may include cognitive-behavioral therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, mindfulness, dialectical behavior therapy, and person-centered treatment. Attachment theory, internal family systems, and positive psychology also inform her work. Dr. Isakson Lyerly also offers a range of assessments, including psychoeducational, neurodevelopmental, and personality testing.  She completed her doctoral degree in clinical psychology from Fielding Graduate University and her Specialist in School Psychology degree from Western Carolina University. In her spare time, she enjoys being with family and friends in nature, listening to and performing music, running, and cycling.

Dr. Berg is a psychiatrist who has been practicing general adult and geriatric psychiatry at The Pisgah Institute since 1999.  Her clinical interests include evaluation and medication management of a broad range of adult mental-health disorders.  She also administers transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) therapy for major depressive disorder.  Dr. Berg obtained her undergraduate degree at Duke University and attended East Carolina University School of Medicine for medical school and psychiatry residency.  She has worked at the Copestone Psychiatric unit and administered ECT treatments in the past. Dr. Berg is a shareholder at The Pisgah Institute, serving as Vice-President and in a leadership and practice-management role.  Her personal areas of interest include medical missions, travel, and ballroom dancing.

Dr. Barley is a clinical psychologist with more than four decades of experience in cognitive-behavior therapy for diagnosis and treatment of anxiety disorders, panic attacks, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder, body-centered repetitive behavior disorders, and mood and depressive disorders.  He graduated from Texas Tech University’s doctoral program in clinical psychology in 1980 and was a staff psychologist at Highland Hospital in Asheville till 1993.  Dr. Barley is a founding member of The Pisgah Institute and a current shareholder of the practice.   He is twice past president of the Western North Carolina Psychological Association.  He is past president, former long-time editor of the association’s newsletter, and former member of the board of directors of the North Carolina Psychological Association.  Dr. Barley has several publications and has made many presentations to professional audiences in his areas of practice.  Occasionally he is told he resembles Stephen Spielberg, which his wife says he does, “vaguely.”

In her private practice, Dr. Miller specializes in treating individuals with issues such as depression and anxiety, as well as chronic medical conditions, sexual identity, end-of-life concerns, substance abuse, and trauma. Dr. Miller is a psychologist who retired after 30 years at the Department of Public Safety working with female offenders and correctional staff.  She has served as a mental-health Red Cross volunteer and has provided critical incident debriefings for first responders and correctional personnel. She started her undergraduate studies at Indiana University and completed her graduate work at North Carolina State University. Dr. Miller uses cognitive-behavioral interventions and believes that individuals cope best by having physical, mental, and spiritual strategies to balance their lives. In her spare time she enjoys nature walks, attending live theater performances, learning piano, and singing in community chorus.

Mrs. Muldowney is a licensed clinical mental health counseling associate and nationally certified counselor who provides individual psychotherapy for a variety of adolescents’ and adults’ concerns.   Mrs. Muldowney has been with The Pisgah Institute since 2017, first in an administrative role and now as a clinician.   She completed her master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling at Montreat College, where she was a member of Chi Sigma Iota, the International Counseling Honor Society.   She completed her graduate internship at The Pisgah Institute.   Mrs. Muldowney believes that every person can thrive with the right tools and that our unique challenges can serve as catalysts for change.  Her treatment approach is person centered and trauma informed and is based in cognitive-behavioral therapies including Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, an evidence-based psychotherapy for PTSD.  In her free time, Mrs. Muldowney enjoys hiking, waterfall hunting, and watching RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Dr. Ross Wiedemann is a board certified psychiatrist specializing in general outpatient practice. His main areas of interest include treatment of major depression, anxiety disorders, OCD, ADHD, bipolar disorder, and trauma, as well as substance use and addiction. He also has experience treating thought disorders such as schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. He works with patients between the ages of 18 and 70 but may see older patients on a case-by-case basis. Dr. Wiedemann completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Georgia where he earned a Bachelor of Science in genetics. He attended medical school and completed his residency training in psychiatry at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. In his spare time, Dr. Wiedemann enjoys hiking, attending live music, watching sports, and spending time with his wife and daughter.

Wheeler received his BSN from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. He has worked as an inpatient nurse on a psychiatric unit at the University of Utah, Huntsman Mental Health Institute, Ogden Regional Hospital, and Mission Hospital (Copestone). He has worked as an outpatient nurse for two years starting at the Bowen Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He is currently obtaining his doctorate degree from Rush University to become a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. His current work at The Pisgah Institute has him interacting with patients in a variety of ways, including direct care.