Care for the Human Behind the Performance

Our work is to help athletes perform with freedom and to change the narrative of what it means for performers to be excellent at their sport, by integrating care for the human behind every performance. Through individual counseling, group programs, and performance development, we’re here for performers of every kind and for those who stand beside and behind them.

What We Offer

Individual and Team Support for High Performers, Coaches, and Families

Confluence was born from a question: who is caring for the inner life of the athlete? We’ve seen it up close — the meltdowns on the field, the joy turning into obligation, the anxiety before games, the perfectionism that tells athletes their worth depends on their performance. Coaches, clubs, and parents see it too. Traditional models of care can be helpful, but there are very few integrated models that hold space for both mental health counseling and performance support for the high performer. Confluence is our answer to that question.

ONE-ON-ONE INDIVIDUAL SESSIONS

Whether you’re working to sharpen your mental game or carrying something heavier off the field, our individual sessions hold space for both. We offer short-term and long-term counseling that integrates mental health support with performance development, because we believe those are never really separate.

CUSTOMIZED GROUP SESSIONS

Peak performance doesn’t happen in isolation. We offer customized workshops and group sessions for teams, coaches, and families, as well as structured group therapy for athletes and high performers navigating shared challenges.

OUR TEAM CAN HELP WITH THESE TOPICS

Confidence + Resilience

Nobody is born mentally tough. Resilience is a practice, not a personality trait – a set of skills that gets sharper each time an athlete faces something hard and stays present through it. Confidence follows the same path: earned through adversity, not granted before it.

Recruitment

The recruitment process asks young athletes to market themselves and make major life decisions while figuring out who they are. It can seem like a performer’s entire future hangs in the balance. Learn to stay grounded and navigate the process with more clarity.

Coach-Athlete Relationships

The relationship between an athlete and coach can shape confidence, motivation, and performance. Athletes and coaches must navigate through communication challenges, conflict, and expectations to build stronger, healthier, partnerships and to support growth on and off the field.

Trauma

Trauma impacts the whole self and shows up in ways that aren’t always obvious, such as hypervigilance, avoidance, disconnection, or explosive reactions. Healing isn’t one-size-fits-all. We know trauma, and we guide athletes towards safety, integration, and a way forward.

Perfectionism

Perfectionism can look like dedication until it starts to take a toll. We help athletes separate their worth from their performance, quiet the inner critic, and pursue excellence without being punished for it.

Anxiety

Anxiety shows up everywhere. Nerves are a normal part of sport but sometimes that system gets hijacked and the pressure takes over the moment. Our work focuses on understanding what’s driving it, building tools to manage it, and reclaiming the parts of life anxiety has taken up space in.

Depression

Depression can look different in an athlete. Outside it looks like you’re showing up but inside, motivation fades, connection feels harder, and even the sport that once brought joy can start to feel empty. Together we can identify what’s fueling it, rebuild purpose and connection, and find the way back to a life that feels worth showing up for.

Athletic Identity

When your sense of self is so closely tied to your sport participation, changes like injury, benching, or retirement can feel like losing yourself. We want to decouple identity from performance and aid athletes in building a diverse sense of self.

Mental Blocks

Sometimes your body knows exactly what to do but your mind won’t let it or it feels like you’ve forgotten how to do something you’ve done a thousand times. We help performers understand what’s driving a block and find their way back to trusting themselves again.

Burnout

Elite sport requires a laundry list of sacrifices. Without proper time for recovery, your sport can turn into an obligation rather than a privilege. We can teach you the tools to recognize burnout and find a sustainable relationship with your sport, never shaming the loss of joy but working to recover it.

Eating Disorders + Body Image

Performance pressure in sport can distort how athletes see their bodies and relate to food. Social media adds to the noise for athletes of every age. Our team helps athletes untangle these pressures and develop a healthier relationship with their bodies.

Sports Career Transition

Athletes often face transition in their sports career with new levels of competition, recovering from injury, graduating, or retiring from sport. Although these moments can bring uncertainty and loss of identity, they can also be a time of exciting opportunities. We will assist you in navigating these changes with courage and purpose, so you thrive in sports and beyond.

Team Culture

An elite team is more than just a team of elite players. Groups and workshops offer coaches and athletes the team-building frameworks that Olympic and professional teams use to develop cohesion rooted in trust and shared values.

Emotional Regulation

The arena of competitive sports is filled with big and raw emotions, where adrenaline collides with high stakes. We help you build tools for managing big emotions in real time, so you can play with emotions rather than be an emotional player.

Mental Skills Training

Confidence, self-talk, visualization, pre-performance routines: the mental game is trainable, just like the physical one. With the right performance support, athletes build a toolkit they can carry into every practice and competition.

Confluence Specializes in High Performance Counseling

Mental Health

We support clarity of mind and resilience in the face of life’s challenges, including anxiety, depression, trauma, and the full range of mental health concerns. Our team is here to help you think clearly and live fully no matter what you’re facing.

Emotional Health

The inner life of a performer deserves attention. With care, you can understand and regulate your emotions, process different feelings, and stay present under pressure so you can show up authentically in sports and every part of your life.

Social Health

Connection matters. We equip you with the tools you need to build meaningful relationships and navigate the communities you’re part of, strengthening the bonds that sustain you through challenges and celebrations alike.

Meet Our Team

YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, WE HAVE ANSWERS

Reach out to us if you have any questions that aren’t covered in our FAQs.

Our office is located in Annapolis, Maryland. Due to state licensure requirements, we only offer mental health counseling for individuals in the state of Maryland. In addition to being licensed therapists, our clinicians are dual certified as mental performance counselors, which allows our team of clinicians to offer group workshops and team events in surrounding states.

We offer a hybrid model of mental health counseling to our individual clients who live in Maryland, which means we can meet at our Annapolis office or via Zoom. Our preference is always to meet in person, but we understand that life gets in the way. Our team workshops, groups, and events can be held at our office or on site.

Because we offer an integrated model of mental health and performance counseling, we are a private pay practice, meaning we do not bill insurance directly. We can provide you with a superbill which you can submit to your insurance company if you have out-of-network coverage or an HSA/FSA plan.

No! Our sister practice is called Rogue River Counseling, which specializes in adult trauma, addiction, and relationship distress. Both Confluence and Rogue River are owned and operated by the same team, and both are located in Annapolis. The river imagery in the Confluence brand is a nod to Rogue River Counseling.

Before working with [Vadim] I wasn’t able to cope with bad performances, but now I can handle my stress and find positives in almost every race I swim…I can now compete with a feeling of freedom from stress and the pressure I used to put on myself.

18F Swimmer

Managing a roster of over 30 guys can get overwhelming. I wanted my players to feel supported and comfortable, but I learned I needed to also set standards and hold them accountable to be successful. Shana was able to help me get to that balance by setting the tone early, communicating more clearly, and exercising skills like setting goal setting and using cues with the team. It really made a difference and it showed me the value of mental performance consulting in college sports.

Coach of DIII College Baseball team

Working with Vadim improved my outlook on the sport I do and how I do it. I was stuck in a rut for a very long time, not improving at all and almost quitting. Vadim’s techniques helped me a lot, especially visualization. Things were easy to learn with Vadim, he was consistent with reminding me of what to do when training and paid attention when others did not.

17F Swimmer

We’ve known Kylie for years, and have always appreciated her personal and professional integrity. We hired her to coach our then-15 year old daughter through some mental blocks within gymnastics and we found her knowledge, approach, and skillset to be exceptional.

Parent of 15F Cheer/Gymnast

My work with Vadim was very effective and transformative! Vadim was very engaged in helping me reach my goals and was very attentive to the big as well as the small items in our work together. He brought to light many small things during our conversations together that I never deemed important. If you stay committed to the work and have the discipline to stay consistent with the work outside of the sessions, you will see the results you want!

21F Swimmer

Starting college last year was a lot harder than I thought. Being so far from home and getting injured the summer going into my freshman year made me question a lot of things. Working with Shana helped me process some of my feelings of loneliness, regret, and guilt. We worked on shifting my mindset during injury, to focus on what I could control. I was able to improve my confidence, connect more with my teammates, and look forward to showing my skills in the upcoming seasons.

19M Baseball Player

Contact Us

Send us a message or give us a call so we can talk more about what you or your athlete need. We try our best to respond to all messages within 24 business hours.

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