Meet Our Team

Dr. Lee Harris

DBH, MS, LPC (MO), LCPC (KS), RPT-S, NCC

AHA Mental Health founder Dr. Lee Harris is a native Midwesterner and a graduate of Liberty High School in Liberty, Mo.

Lee was drawn to psychology as a teenager when he understood its potential to make a practical difference in people’s lives. Although Lee experienced success in the financial services industry as a bank vice president, he knew his calling was to help people experience change on a personal level.

Partnering with you in the process of change
Sometimes therapy can lead to sweeping changes in a person’s life. More frequently, it helps people navigate the challenges of the moment. While personal change can and does occur, it can’t be rushed.

“There are times we can look back and say, ‘You know what? We finished this course of therapy and look how much change you've made.’ But most of the gratification comes in the small changes you see with a person. It's one change, but we can look back and see we're making progress.”

Although Dr. Lee desires to help people grow, he does not view himself as a “fixer.”

“I don’t begin a counseling relationship with the idea of changing someone. My purpose is to help everyone make progress toward their personal goals. I don’t tell you what your goal should be or who you should be. I help you determine what you want, then work with you to take steps in the right direction.”

Dr. Lee has learned that although clients’ problems may be similar, each person needs a unique approach.

“Everything I've done has been different and quite unique. And that's what's led me to my approach with clients. For example, I might counsel five people on the topic of depression. However, each person is a distinct individual, and each is going to need something different from therapy. There's no cookie cutter. It’s a matter of discovering the approach that’s most helpful to a particular individual and pursuing it.”

Barbara Warner

PhD, MA, MS, LPC
Barbara is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) with a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of Saint Mary and is completing her supervision hours to become a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC).

She has a PhD in Public Policy from the University of Arkansas, a Master’s in Government from Johns Hopkins University, and a Master of Science in Journalism from the University of Kansas. Her professional background also includes healthcare, with experience in cancer care and neurology. Earlier in her career, Barbara worked for the U.S. Congress, where she focused on increasing research into women’s health, and later served as Senior Adviser for Communications to the Under Secretary for Economic Affairs at the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Her doctoral research examined how language influences the way people think, perceive, and respond. Combined with her training in counseling psychology, her interdisciplinary background informs her work as she helps people understand the thought patterns, motivations, and processes that influence their choices and growth. She helps patients find their own sense of direction – their “true north” – particularly during times of uncertainty, stress, or transition, helping them move forward in ways that feel grounded and authentic.

Barbara believes effective therapy begins with understanding the individual – not fitting the individual into a particular theory. Her approach is warm, collaborative, and individualized, drawing from different therapeutic methods according to each patient’s needs. She helps people recognize patterns, understand themselves more deeply, and make changes that are consistent with who they are and how they want to live.

Barbara works with adults and couples. She has a special interest in working with medical professionals and has provided continuing education for nurses and nurse practitioners on moral integrity in healthcare.

She has completed Levels I and II of an EMDRIA-approved training in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy and incorporates EMDR into her practice. EMDR is an evidence-based psychotherapy commonly used in the treatment of trauma and trauma-related symptoms.

Call Barbara to schedule a free 15-minute consultation.

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Dustin Grier

I believe therapy should be a place where you can show up as you are – without judgment or pressure to have everything figured out. I work with teens 12+ and adults navigating anxiety, stress, life transitions, performance pressure, and feeling stuck. My approach combines evidence-based therapy with practical tools tailored to you. My goal is simple: help you find your ground and move forward.

I want therapy to feel like a place where you can be yourself, feel comfortable, and know you’re truly being heard. I’ll meet you where you are, without judgment, and work alongside you to make sense of what you’re going through. Together, we’ll build on your strengths, find what works for you, and take steps toward feeling more grounded, confident, and hopeful.

Whatever you’re carrying right now, it makes sense that you might feel overwhelmed or unsure of what to do next. You don’t have to navigate it alone. This is a space to feel heard, understood, and accepted without judgment. Together, we can make sense of what you’re going through, build on your strengths, and take things one step at a time.

Call Dustin to schedule a free 15-minute consultation.

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Shaniece Wise

Shaniece Wise is a therapist with AHA Mental Health who provides counseling entirely through telehealth, meeting clients online across Missouri. Her practice is built around a simple understanding: Most people seeking support aren't short on motivation; they're short on time. Shaniece counsels working adults and college students (people whose schedules are shaped by jobs, classes, commutes, and the demands of everyone else in their lives) and she offers evening appointments so that getting help doesn't require rearranging a life to get it.

Before entering private practice, Shaniece spent many years working inside schools: first as a teacher, and later as a school counselor. That experience gave her an insider's understanding of what students carry through the school day: academic pressure, social stress, family strain that shows up in the classroom, and the quiet struggles teachers often see before anyone else does. She has presented at professional meetings on supporting students within the school setting and on helping teachers care for their own wellbeing. Today, that background shapes how she works with the adults her clients have become: college students adjusting to independence and working adults whose school-era patterns still echo in how they handle pressure, perfectionism, and burnout.

By focusing on telehealth, Shaniece is able to serve people across Missouri, including those who live too far from an office to make in-person sessions realistic, and those who simply do their best reflecting from their own space. Her evening availability is intentional: Therapy is easier to commit to when it fits around the rest of your life, not instead of it.

Call Shaniece for a free 15-minute consultation.

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