Chris D’Arpa is an independently licensed therapist who works with adolescents and adults across Maryland, Washington, DC, and Virginia. He specializes in addiction and emotion dysregulation, helping clients who feel caught in cycles of unhelpful patterns, overwhelm, and avoidance find stability and acceptance while moving toward values-based change. He earned his Master of Social Work from the University of Maryland, and his undergraduate background in public policy and social justice informs his culturally responsive, client-centered approach to care.
Chris is part of the Comprehensive Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Program, where he provides individual DBT therapy, facilitates an in-person Adult DBT Skills Group, and offers DBT phone coaching and parent coaching to support skill use between sessions. He has completed foundational DBT training and further training in DBT for Substance Use Disorders (SUD) through Behavioral Tech. Chris also serves on the Aspen Program team and facilitates an in-person Adult Substance Use Support Group, and brings three years of experience in a residential treatment program for co-occurring substance use and mental health disorders.
Chris values a strong therapeutic alliance and works to build trust and collaboration throughout the therapeutic process. His style is warm, strengths-based, and trauma-informed, integrating DBT, cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing, and mindfulness practices in a structured yet flexible way.
Outside of work, Chris enjoys hiking, music production, and growing plants at home.