Individuals & couples
The way you learned
to be close still
shapes everything.
I'm Dr. Katie Cantero, a licensed clinical psychologist in Wisconsin. I work with adults carrying anxiety and depression, and with couples who keep landing in the same argument. Not to manage the symptoms, but to understand where they came from.
Request a consultation How I work
Free 15‑minute consultation · In person in Wausau · Telehealth in 40+ states · Private pay, superbill provided
You might be here because
- The worry doesn't switch off, even when nothing is actually wrong.
- You're functioning, and exhausted by what functioning costs you.
- You and your partner are having the same fight in different clothes.
- You pull away first, or hold on too tight, and you can see yourself doing it.
- You've done therapy before. It helped a bit. You want to go further down.
None of that has to be a crisis to be worth an hour a week.
About
I'd rather understand you than manage you.
I'm a licensed clinical psychologist working with individual adults and with couples. Most of the people I see are dealing with anxiety or depression, and most of them have already tried to think their way out of it before they call.
My training is psychodynamic and attachment‑based, which in plain terms means I'm interested in where a feeling learned to live, not just how to turn its volume down. That takes a little longer than a worksheet. It also tends to hold.
I studied theology and psychology at the University of Notre Dame, then earned my MA and PsyD at Rosemead School of Psychology in California.
- Education
- PsyD & MA, Rosemead School of Psychology
BA, University of Notre Dame - Licence
- Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Wisconsin
PSYPACT authority for telepsychology - Works with
- Individual adults and couples
How I help
What I work with
A short list on purpose. These are the things I do well, and I'd rather tell you honestly when something isn't my area.
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Anxiety
Worry that won't switch off, panic, overthinking, and the perfectionism that usually sits underneath it. We go after the root, not just the volume.
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Depression
Flatness, heaviness, loss of interest, and the particular exhaustion of holding everything together for everyone else.
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Couples
For partners stuck in a loop neither of them chose. We slow the fight down far enough to see what each of you is actually protecting.
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Relationship patterns
The same dynamic across partners, family and work. Why you chase, or withdraw, or go quiet, and what it was once for.
My approach
We start with how you learned to connect.
Long before you had words for it, you worked out what closeness costs. Whether it was safe to need someone. What you had to do to keep people near, or how to go without. That early arithmetic doesn't expire. It's still running quietly underneath the anxiety, the flatness, and the fight you keep having on a Tuesday night.
So I'm less interested in giving you techniques to manage a feeling and more interested in where that feeling learned to live. When people see the pattern clearly, in the room, with someone who isn't flinching, it tends to loosen. That's the work.
With couples it's the same lens pointed at two people at once. Most recurring arguments aren't about the dishes or the money. They're two attachment systems setting each other off, fast, below the level of words. Slow it down and it stops being a fight about who's right.
If you want the formal name for it: attachment‑based psychodynamic therapy. You don't need to know that to benefit from it, and I won't talk at you in theory.
Practically
- Frequency
- Weekly to start
- In person
- Wausau, WI
- Telehealth
- 40+ PSYPACT states
- Insurance
- Not billed
We'll decide together how long weekly makes sense, and I'll tell you plainly if I think someone else is a better fit for what you need.
What to expect
Starting is the hardest part, so I keep it simple.
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A short call
Fifteen minutes, free, no notes taken. You tell me what's going on. I tell you honestly whether I'm the right person for it.
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First session
A longer conversation about your history and what you want to be different. No clipboard interrogation.
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The work
Weekly sessions with a direction we both agreed on, revisited out loud often enough that you always know why we're doing this.
Where we can meet
In Wausau, or anywhere PSYPACT reaches.
My office is in Wausau, and I see people there in person. If that's not practical, or you'd simply rather not drive, we can meet by video instead. Same work, same hour.
I also hold PSYPACT authority, which is the interstate agreement that lets a licensed psychologist provide telepsychology across state lines. In practice that means I can work with you if you're located in any participating state, not only Wisconsin, and that we don't have to stop if you move or travel for a stretch.
Over forty states and territories participate, and the list grows most years. Check whether your state is one of them
What matters is where you are physically sitting during the session, not where you live or where your insurance is from. If you're unsure, ask me on the consultation call and I'll check.
The office
2801 7th StreetWausau, Wisconsin
Appointment times are arranged individually. Ask on the consultation call and we'll find something that fits.
Fees
Private pay, and here's exactly why.
I don't bill insurance. That's a deliberate choice, and it's the one that keeps your diagnosis out of your permanent record, keeps an insurer from deciding how many sessions you're allowed, and means we work on what you actually came in for.
You can still be reimbursed. I provide a superbill every month. If your plan has out‑of‑network mental health benefits, you submit it and your insurer pays you back a portion directly.
Read the full explanation, and how to check your out‑of‑network benefits
Because I'm a private‑pay practice, the No Surprises Act entitles you to a Good Faith Estimate of what care will cost. I provide one in writing before we begin, so you will never find out what something costs after the fact.
- Consultation call
- Free · 15 min
- Individual session
- Quoted on the call
- Couples session
- Quoted on the call
- Insurance
- Not billed · superbill provided
- Good Faith Estimate
- In writing, before we start
Questions
Before you get in touch
Do you take my insurance?
No, I'm a private‑pay practice. I do provide a monthly superbill so you can claim out‑of‑network reimbursement from your plan. Here's the full reasoning, and how to check your benefits.
Do you see couples, or only individuals?
Both. I'm currently accepting couples as well as individual adults, and I use the same attachment‑based approach with both.
Do we meet online or in person?
Either. My office is at 2801 7th Street in Wausau, and I also see people by video.
I'm not in Wisconsin. Can you still see me?
Very likely yes. I hold PSYPACT authority, which lets me provide telepsychology to clients located in any participating state, and more than forty states and territories now participate. Check the current map, or just ask me when you get in touch. What counts is where you're physically sitting during the session.
What does "attachment-based" actually mean?
That we pay attention to how you learned to be close to people, usually very early, and how that's still shaping your relationships and your sense of yourself now. In practice it means fewer worksheets and more honest conversation about what's really going on between you and the people who matter.
How long does therapy take?
It depends on what you're bringing. Focused work can take a few months; longer-standing patterns take longer. We'll talk about it openly rather than letting it drift.
Do you prescribe medication?
No. If medication seems worth considering, I'll coordinate with your physician or a psychiatrist.
Is what I say confidential?
Yes, with the narrow legal exceptions I'll explain in writing at the start: risk of serious harm to yourself or someone else, suspected abuse of a child or vulnerable adult, and a court order. Not billing insurance means there's also no insurer reviewing your file.
What's your cancellation policy?
I'll give you the full policy in writing before our first session, along with fees and the Good Faith Estimate, so there are no surprises.
I've been in therapy before and it didn't help.
Worth saying out loud at the start. What didn't work is useful information, and it changes how I'd approach things.
Get in touch
Send a note and I'll get back to you.
Tell me a little about what's going on and how to reach you, and we'll set up a free fifteen‑minute call. There's no obligation after it, and if I'm not the right fit I'll say so and point you somewhere better.
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2801 7th Street, Wausau, Wisconsin
and by video across PSYPACT states -
Free 15‑minute consultation
arranged after you get in touch