Welcome! My name is Dr. Dasylia Willoughby, and I am an ABPN Board-Certified Psychiatrist. I am passionate about providing integrative, holistic, compassionate care to support individuals on their mental health journeys.

I am a proud DMV native, I was born in Washington, D.C., and raised in Silver Spring, Maryland. My path into psychiatry was shaped by personal experiences, including the profound impact of losing my brother to gun violence when I was 11 years old. This life event and my own experience of grief over the years highlighted the importance of mental health. I then wanted to dedicate my life to help others overcome grief and depression.

One of the most formative moments in my desire to pursue a more psychodynamic approach to psychiatry came while in undergrad at the University of Maryland, College Park. I was still struggling with the grief of losing my brother unexpectedly. It seemed like every new experience in my life that he was not a part of brought about a new reason to grieve. In addition, my mother had fallen ill with an unresectable brain tumor, further adding to my worries. I decided that I needed some type of mental health support, and I went to the campus counseling office seeking help. Rather than getting the help, that I so desperately wanted, I was told that dealing with a lot and that there was no way they could help me. I was devastated. I felt so unseen. I wanted someone to talk to. I wanted someone to listen. I wanted someone to help me understand all these feelings that I was having. After so many years, why was I still struggling with the death of my brother. After this experience, I reached out to several other therapists for help. Each time, I did not receive the type of therapy I wanted.  I wanted someone to help me better understand myself. I wanted something deeper. I wondered if this superficial understanding was all that there was to therapy.

I went on to graduate from medical school at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Erie, Pennsylvania. I was definitive in my desire to pursue psychiatry. I had seen the difference medication management had made in many people’s lives and my own and I wanted to help others with their own mental health struggles. However, I longed for a deeper understanding of the psyche. At this point, I was not sure it even existed.

I continued my training in Philadelphia, where I completed my Psychiatry residency at Jefferson Einstein Healthcare Network and I worked at Belmont Behavioral Hospital, where I expanded my skills in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. In residency, I was exposed to the idea of psychodynamic therapy by my wonderful program director. It was exactly the type of deeper understanding of the complexities of the human mind that I was looking for all this time. I had to learn more and in pursuit of this, I went on to join the Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia and I completed the Foundations of Psychoanalytic Thought program.

Currently, I am honored to be a psychoanalytic trainee at the Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia and I am an active member of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the American Academy of Psychodynamic Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis (AAPDPP).

In my practice, I believe in treating each person as a whole individual, which includes considering their unique past, present, and cultural context and incorporating various modalities including therapy, plant-based medicine, lifestyle changes and possibly medication management to create a path to life-long healing and deepening your understanding of yourself.  

When I’m not with patients, I enjoy playing tennis, weightlifting, writing poetry, spending time with my husband and cat, Mochi. I am also an avid anime enthusiast. These hobbies keep me balanced and connected to the things I love.

Lastly I believe:

• Mental health and physical health are intimately intertwined. Both are just as important when it comes to overall wellness.

• Your struggles do not define you. Every individual is more than their challenges and there is always a path to healing.