Brent Elwood

About MeID: an upper body portrait photo of Associate Director/Training Director Brent Elwood, Ph.D. standing in front of a brick wall, wearing pink/white strips shirt

My dad was in the Air Force so my family lived in a number of places in the US and also in Europe, and as an adult I lived in Chile and the Philippines. I am fascinated by people and their cultures, which has led me to learn about all kinds of human experience. I have studied international relations and Spanish (B.A.), then organizations (M.O.B), and finally found my way to counseling psychology (Ph.D.). I have a wide ranging interests in psychology: group dynamics, trauma, gender issues, and the mind-body connection, to name just a few. I have immense curiosity, so there isn’t much I can’t get interested in. I believe deeply in the inherent worth of each person and consider it a privilege working with people in their struggles. I particularly enjoy working in a group setting. There is immense power in groups, and I like to use that energy to help individuals and organizations change. When not at work I like playing with my kids, reading, music (listening and making), cooking, and have some pretensions to spend more time kayaking and biking.

What has been your most embarrassing moment?

Not long after after starting work at the Counseling Center I heard a very funny story on the radio. As I shared this story with a couple colleagues I started laughing hard. Unfortunately, I had a candy in my mouth which produced a lot of saliva, and it began to drip out my mouth. When I finished the story I looked for the drool but didn’t see any–in my mortified state I decided it must have not been as much as I thought or maybe it had hit the floor. So I started to leave when my boss said, “Brent there is something you might want to clean up. ” There it was right on the desk. So I cleaned it up, worrying all the time that my new co-workers wondered if they had hired a cretin who not only didn’t have control over basic functions but also didn’t have the social skills to clean up after himself. I think the worst part is they didn’t think the story was all that funny.

What is your favorite comfort food?

Thick homemade soups or Enchiladas in ranchero sauce and refried beans.

If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Britain, interior Mexico, Ireland, Spain. But wherever, I would like to stay for at least a few weeks and let the place sink in.

Quotations

Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin. It is as, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but sometimes he feels that there really is another way, if only he could stop bumping for a moment and think of it.
Winnie-the-Pooh, A.A. Milne

You can’t have the relationship you want, you can only have the relationship you make.  Yvonne Agazarian

Professional Credentials and Interests

Ph.D., Licensed Psychologist (The University of Texas at Austin, 2001); Assistant Director:  Training and Clinical Services.
My theoretical orientation is systems-oriented informed by psychodynamic, feminist, and hermeneutic perspectives. I provide individual, couples and group therapy, with special interest in group therapy, trauma, gender, and career issues, as well as organizational consultation. I am a long-time member of the Systems-Centered Training and Research Institute.

brent.elwood@maine.edu