First Choice Counseling Center – Owings Mills

Started off good—the therapists themselves were fine. The problem is with the owner/CEO. Over time, communication broke down completely. Calls went unanswered for months, and getting help became nearly impossible. When… I finally spoke directly with the owner while in distress, the interaction felt dismissive and unprofessional, and the call ended abruptly without any help or follow-up. In the end, I felt neglected and abandoned when I needed support the most. I cannot recommend this practice due to how it is managed.

Kelly is one of the most compassionate and patient therapists ever. She allows you to speak and I can tell she really cares for her clients. I am very appreciative that I get to spend my sessions with her. Having… someone like Kelly to talk to makes everything feel that it will all be okay and this is just based on her listening skills alone.

I've consistently had a positive experience here – no issues whatsoever, just a great vibe. Having seen therapists since 1994, I can confidently say that only two have truly made a difference for me, and Korcelia… Saygbay is one of them. Ms. Saygbay possesses a powerful insight combined with a warmth that is incredibly helpful. She genuinely listens and excels at getting to the root of issues. The entire office environment has always been pleasant and very supportive. I'm truly proud to leave this review. Keep up the excellent work, First Choice – you were definitely the right choice for me! And for any nay-sayers out there thinking this might be AI-generated, here's a wee Scots code for you: "Faigh saol duit féin!"

Called to become a new client and was told my insurance was not accepted, I was absolutely fine with that because whomever answered the phone was so rude!

My family uses this counseling center! I will say from the moment I called into the office to request an appointment the customer service was awesome from EVERYONE! They really are making a difference in my families… life. They have an awesome team! I am sooo happy/grateful I found them. I will recommend anyone to them..

I’m almost certain anything above 5 stars is either fake or coerced. This place is simply horrible. If you have ANY regard for your well being, just stay away. They need to clean out their bad apples bc it’s rotting the… entire tree. If they had better staff, they’re therapeutic approach isn’t bad, if the therapists were to actually listen to what you had to stay. Not to mention front desk should have been fired already. She is an absolute NIGHTMARE. At least she was with me. Why scoff at the fact I needed help? Real professional 🙄

I'd give zero stars if I could. The greed running this country makes me want to vomit. We're told how important our mental health is but we're not told that money is what ultimately drives the organizations supposedly… wanting to help people. I'm simply appalled and disgusted by the fact that unless I agree to see a psychiatrist, while I have no desire to take any psychiatric medications, I'm simply not eligible for mental health care therapy. The reason I'm forced to do it this way is none other than money. If I were suicidal this organization, First Choice, would be responsible for my death right now. How can they turn someone away who's reaching out for help with their mental health??? How do they sleep at night??? Look themselves in the mirror??? I simply can't wrap my head around this. With the "health care" we're forced to use it can only be called "sick care" as there's absolutely no desire for healing. It's all about making or keeping us ill, creating lifetime customers of big pharma, which your drs ALWAYS get kickbacks for, continued control and keeping people under the thumb of the pathetic government. Money and greed with no compassion ever and it's now evident in the mental health field. If you're suicidal, DO NOT CALL THIS AWFUL PLACE! I BEG OF YOU! Save yourself and your mental well-being by calling somewhere else immediately! PLEASE LEARN FROM MY EXPERIENCE AND TRUST WHAT I'M SHARING HERE!

If you truly care about the state of your mental health, do not seek therapy at this place. I had been a patient here for about four months. My therapist would not listen to anything I had to say. They hyper fixated on… aspects of my life that were merely symptoms of the issue and would forget important details of my life that had a significant impact on my mental health. I wanted the focus of my therapy to be a means of healing from events from my past. Instead, they choose to focus on my disordered eating, which I never approved of. If I wanted to manage my disordered eating patterns, I would have gone to a specialist. Or at least, I should have been referred to one by them. It's very unusual to try and resolve an issue you don't specialize in. My pain and trauma were dismissed by the staff. I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety by my therapist. In fact, she outright asked me to list symptoms of depression in one session. But when I needed the documentation of my diagnosis for school, the staff told me that they didn't have any record of my depression and anxiety. They told me I would have to go in for a re-evaluation, but that they "couldn't guarantee a diagnosis " . Despite the fact that they had already diagnosed me. Either they do not have a paper trail of my medical records or they're outright choosing not to release that information to me. I'm shocked at the level of ineptitude this place continues to display. I was incorrectly diagnosed with another condition that I did not fit the criteria for, according to the DSM-5. When I read my patient files, I noticed that the therapist wrote several incorrect details regarding my mental health and general life. Some of the advice I was given to manage the symptoms of my depression and anxiety were awful. I was advised by my therapist to decorate my room, in response to telling them that there was a lack of contentment in my life. I was advised to take a long hot shower to soothe my nerves. But honestly, that's my own personal gripe. This advice may work well for others. And if it does, then more power to you. The therapist kept telling me every other session that they would "teach me breathing techniques" for my anxiety. And yet, she would constantly forget that she ever told me that in the first place. How unprofessional. My therapist would assign me journaling entries to write as homework. But when the next session would come, she'd completely forget that she even assigned me anything. Along with her forgetting very crucial details regarding my life, this was just awful to deal with. Therapy also felt very artificial and monotonous. But again, that's just my own personal gripe. I wish I had noticed the red flags sooner. If you go to therapy here, chances are, you'll be assigned a therapist who has little to no interest in helping you better yourself. The staff will deny you your rights to your documents, your pain will be dismissed, and you'll have wasted your time. If you have any ounce of self respect for yourself, do not seek therapy here.

After looking and dealing with about 4 other therapist, Thanks to Google I found this place, I am so glad I called and made an appointment. A year later I have no regrets. My therapist(Morgan)is amazing she doesn't… judge, she's empathize with me and always make sure I am ok and comfortable, she's really the best. Shaundra is also the greatest from day one she'll say our goal is to make sure you're okay and to get healthy. Whatever we can do to help you get better we will. I am very grateful for First Choice and the staff for helping me through my mental health journey. Thank you.

It’s unfortunate that they’re in the mental health business but decide to deal with people with such rudeness. Sigh. Working in the front desk is the first impression so you would think that they take pride in that… position. I guess not.

terrible experience. set up an appointment with them last week to begin sessions. had a session scheduled for april 13th at 3pm. upon joining the online appointment i was left waiting for the doctor to join for the… entirety of the appointment. i emailed both samantha klunk-nduura whomst i was suppose to have my appointment with as well as stephanie marshall. samantha never called or responded to my message to her. stephanie did not provide an explanation either. i was left without a session, essentially ghosted by the assigned therapist while no one will get back to me on what happened.

This place truly is amazing! Dr. Shaundra Parsley is one of the best and most caring psychiatrists I've ever had, and the entire staff is super friendly and helpful. They will make sure you are getting the proper… treatment you need, and it is very apparent that they want you to succeed. I won't be going anywhere else, that is for sure.

The front desk lady was so rude I didn’t even want to make an appointment.

Very good place. They actually take the time to hear your problems and help you solve whatever it is that going on.