Online Therapy in
Pennsylvania | Sports Psychology, LGBTQ+ Affirming Care & DBT
Serving Pennsylvania Residents (and Beyond) Exclusively Online
Finding a therapist you actually connect with is hard enough without the added pressure of location logistics. At Grand Slam Psych, Dr. El McCabe offers the same clinical expertise and warmth you’d get in a traditional office, except you can access it from anywhere in Pennsylvania, right from your home or wherever feels comfortable.
We are exclusively online. No office location, no commute, no fighting traffic on the Schuylkill or the Turnpike. Just secure, confidential therapy from a licensed psychologist who knows and loves Pennsylvania.
Why Dr. McCabe & Pennsylvania
Bucknell University quad during the fall
Dr. El McCabe’s connection to Pennsylvania goes well beyond a map. Her path runs straight through the Keystone State.
She spent her college years at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, in the heart of central Pennsylvania, where she first fell in love with the state’s small-town warmth, rolling ridgelines, and fierce school pride.
She also spent three years working in Philadelphia, where she led LGBTQ+ themed process groups and DBT groups. Those years shaped how she works today. Group work teaches you quickly that people heal faster when they feel seen by others, and that skills only matter if you can actually use them on a hard day. Philadelphia’s LGBTQ+ community, one of the most vibrant and resilient in the country, taught her a great deal about identity, chosen family, and showing up for each other.
And yes, she’s a sports person through and through. Dr. McCabe is a fan of the Philadelphia Union, and that love of the game informs her work with athletes at every level. Pennsylvania is a state that lives and breathes sports, and she gets what it feels like when the pressure is on.
Dr. McCabe earned her Ph.D. in Counseling & School Psychology from the University at Buffalo, SUNY, and completed her postdoctoral fellowship at Princeton University. Today she brings that training, plus her Pennsylvania roots, to clients across the state.
And she does it entirely online, so whether you’re in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Lancaster, the Lehigh Valley, State College, Erie, or anywhere in between, you can work with her without changing your schedule or commute to an office.
What We Treat (Pennsylvania Focus)
Dr. El snowboarding at Jack Frost Big Boulder Ski Resort
Sports Psychology | Mental Performance for PA Athletes
Pennsylvania produces athletes at every level, from Friday-night-lights high school standouts to D1 college competitors, semi-professional players, and weekend warriors training at a high level. But raw talent and physical conditioning only get you so far. When the pressure is highest and the stakes are real, it’s the mental game that separates athletes performing at their ceiling from those performing below it.
Dr. McCabe specializes in sports psychology with experience working with:
- D1 college athletes (she completed her postdoctoral fellowship at Princeton supporting athletes across 15+ teams)
- Professional and semi-professional athletes navigating the mental side of performance
- Coaches carrying enormous performance pressure of their own
- LGBTQ+ athletes navigating identity and belonging in sports
Whether you’re dealing with performance anxiety, burnout, confidence issues, or the mental side of injury recovery, Dr. McCabe helps you build the psychological skills that translate directly into better performance.
Learn more about sports psychology →
LGBTQ+ Affirming Therapy | Identity-Conscious Care
Night out at one of Philly’s best restauraunts
Finding an LGBTQ+ affirming therapist is hard. Finding one who truly gets it, not just clinically, but from lived experience, is even harder.
Dr. McCabe is an openly Queer licensed psychologist and the 2024–2025 President of APA Division 44 (The Society for the Psychology of Sexual Orientation & Gender Diversity). During her years in Philadelphia, she led LGBTQ+ themed process groups, so she knows the power of a space where your identity isn’t something to explain or work around. In individual therapy, it’s centered, validated, and honored.
Whether you’re exploring your gender identity, coming out, navigating relationship dynamics, or processing discrimination, you deserve care that is both clinically excellent and genuinely affirming. This is especially true if you live outside a major city and have had a hard time finding it close to home.
She has particular expertise working with:
- Bisexual and pansexual individuals
- Non-binary and gender non-conforming individuals
- Transgender clients exploring or navigating transition
- Queer athletes (the intersection of sports + identity + mental health)
Learn more about LGBTQ+ affirming therapy →
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) | Skills That Work
Classic Lewisburg lamposts
DBT is one of the most well-researched, skills-based therapies available. It’s built around four core pillars: mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness.
Dr. McCabe led DBT groups in Philadelphia, and she knows what it takes to make these skills stick. Unlike rigid, manualized DBT programs, she takes a personalized approach: she hand-selects the most relevant DBT skills for your specific situation, teaches them in plain language, and helps you practice them in real moments that matter.
If you’re struggling with emotional dysregulation, persistent conflict in relationships, or patterns of self-destructive behavior, DBT can help. For athletes especially, DBT-based emotion regulation and distress tolerance skills translate directly into better mental performance under pressure.
How It Works: Exclusively Online
Night time view from Dr. El’s Philadelphia office
All therapy at Grand Slam Psych is conducted 100% online via secure video sessions. Here’s what that means for you:
✅ No commute, whether you’re in Philly or Pittsburgh, you log in from home ✅ Schedule flexibility, sessions fit your life, not the other way around ✅ Complete privacy, therapy from your own safe space ✅ Same quality care, Dr. McCabe brings the same warmth, expertise, and clinical rigor as any in-person practice ✅ Secure & confidential, HIPAA-compliant video platform
What to Expect in Your First Session
Your first session is about getting to know each other and figuring out if we’re a good fit. Dr. McCabe will ask thoughtful questions about what brings you in, what your goals are, and what you’re hoping to get out of therapy. She’ll also share about her approach so you can decide if it resonates with you.
If you want to move forward, you’ll complete some brief (and confidential) intake paperwork, and from there, you set the pace. Sessions are collaborative, conversational, and tailored to you.
Insurance, Costs & Access
Rittenhouse square in the winter
Insurance: We accept several in-network plans including Aetna & Blue Cross Blue Shield (Anthem, Highmark, IBX). If we’re not in-network with your plan, we provide superbills for out-of-network reimbursement.
Private Pay: Intake sessions are $225. Individual therapy sessions are $200. Limited sliding scale slots are available based on income.
Therapy Intensives: 3–4 hour immersive sessions (great for making rapid progress on a specific concern). Pricing ranges from $650–$850 depending on the intensive type and whether you’re a new or existing client.
See full pricing and payment options →
Why Choose Grand Slam Psych?
Licensed psychologist, not a coach. Dr. McCabe is equipped to work with both the performance/skill side and the deeper mental health concerns that often underlie it. Anxiety, depression, identity struggles, and burnout don’t stay in the locker room, they deserve real clinical attention.
Real expertise, not generic advice. With a Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellowship at Princeton, published research in LGBTQ+ mental health, and years of clinical experience, Dr. McCabe brings depth to the work.
Warm and challenging. Her style is genuine, curious, and often playful, but she’ll also push you. That combination of challenge and support is what drives real growth.
Pennsylvania roots, personal investment. From her Bucknell years to her three years working in Philadelphia, Dr. McCabe has a genuine connection to this state and the people in it. Whether you’re an athlete, a professional, an LGBTQ+ person, or someone navigating multiple identities at once, you’ll be working with someone who is invested in your community.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you offer in-person therapy in Philadelphia or elsewhere in Pennsylvania?
No. Grand Slam Psych is 100% online, which means you can meet with Dr. McCabe by secure video from anywhere in Pennsylvania, whether that’s your living room in Philadelphia or a quiet spot at home in Pittsburgh.
Can I see Dr. McCabe if I live in Pennsylvania?
Yes. Dr. McCabe serves Pennsylvania residents online through PSYPACT. The best way to confirm everything is a free 15-minute consultation.
Do you offer LGBTQ+ affirming therapy in Pennsylvania?
Yes. Dr. McCabe is an openly Queer psychologist and past President of APA Division 44. She previously led LGBTQ+ themed process groups in Philadelphia and works with LGBTQ+ clients across Pennsylvania in individual therapy.
What is DBT, and could it help me?
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) teaches practical skills in mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. It’s helpful for intense emotions, relationship conflict, and patterns of self-destructive behavior. Dr. McCabe led DBT groups in Philadelphia and now tailors DBT skills to each individual client.
Do you work with athletes in Pennsylvania?
Yes. Dr. McCabe works with high school, college, professional, and recreational athletes, as well as coaches, on performance anxiety, confidence, burnout, and injury recovery.
Do you take insurance?
We accept several in-network plans including Aetna and Blue Cross Blue Shield (Anthem, Highmark, IBX). If we’re not in-network with your plan, we provide superbills for out-of-network reimbursement.
Ready to Work Together?
You deserve a therapist who understands your world: your ambitions, your identity, your pressures. If you’re a Pennsylvanian looking for online therapy with a licensed psychologist who brings real expertise and genuine warmth (and who will happily talk about the Union), Grand Slam Psych is here.
Schedule a free 15-minute consultation →
All therapy sessions are conducted online. No in-person office location currently available.