About Dr. Jill Cooley
Genuine. Practical. Creative.
Hi there! My name is Jill Cooley, also known as Dr. Jill to the families I work with. I’m a licensed counseling psychologist and educational consultant specializing in whole family solutions. I’ve worked with hundreds of families to help them overcome a variety of challenges to find more unified and supportive family structures.
I’m a wife, mom to two kids, and dog mom to one adorable little old lady dog. We live in San Diego and love all the things that make San Diego a great family community. As a family, we’re often out and about enjoying nature, on hiking trails and at the beach. We particularly love searching for rocks and seashells, and turning them into decoration for our home.
I’ve long been interested in human behavior and have always loved working with kids. My first job was as a summer camp counselor and while the kids made it great, I was fascinated learning to understand the parents and other camp staff and how everyone interacted.
My Bachelors degree is in Elementary Education, my Masters is in Mental Health Counseling, and I got my PhD in Counseling Psychology in 2007 from Florida State University. I took time off when my first child was born to focus on being a mom. I’ve been back in my private consulting and therapy business for 5 years and have evolved into more of the educational consultant aspect, although I still thoroughly enjoy working with families and adults for therapy and other services.
In my early career, working in early education, I struggled watching kids in a traditional curriculum who clearly needed non-traditional support or solutions. I could see what they needed but we were limited to the resources available. This led me to pursue more education and ultimately start my business.
When I created my practice, I intentionally went “outside the box” of traditional psychology and consulting to offer services focused on the specific needs of today. I specialize in helping with challenging or oppositional behaviors, implementing discipline that promotes resilience, and supporting neuro-divergent children.
I’ve found there is so much overwhelm and confusion with an abundance of “expert advice” telling parents how to handle sleep and behavior in children. With so much information and suggestions, parents aren’t sure what is the best solution. So, I used my training and experience to simplify the information and make it easy for parents to access. In my therapy sessions, we use these solutions and provide skills for the whole family to empower kids, support parents, and raise resilient and resourceful kids.
This is my passion. I’m grateful for the ability to work with incredible families just like yours every day and watch the progress and development of these bright kids as they find success in life and support in the family.
Philosophy
My commitment is to whole family psychology. This means a commitment from the parents and children to work together to improve communication, understanding, and support within the family to achieve the outcome you desire.
My driving force is the genuine belief that humans WANT to do well but don’t always know how to do well. Having the skills to be successful in school and at home is something we crave and if we can provide those, the individual, family, school, and society as a whole all benefit.
I believe that all behavior is the result of communication – or lack thereof. If we can empower each family member to communicate clearly and confidently, it can reduce outbursts, anger, frustration, and more. A child (or even an adult) is NEVER the problem – we just require the skills and communication to support each other.
I’m often contacted to support a presenting child or individual issue but it’s not just about the child. After the initial assessment, we’ll see there are sleep issues or school concerns. Upon diving deeper, there are parental issues to work on as well. This leads to the whole family solution.
My philosophy is that individual issues cannot be treated in a vacuum. I’ll help you see how the dots connect between multiple variables in each family member and provide you with techniques to stay calm in chaos.
It’s very probable that I’m not like other professionals you’ve worked with, but if those approaches haven’t found the solutions you’re looking for, then my approach might be what it takes. I’m going to challenge you and ask for your accountability. I’m not here to be your friend, but to be the solution you haven’t yet found. And I genuinely believe we can get there together!