Meet Lindsey Lawrence, PA-C

Dedicated clinician, military leader, and advocate for mental health care

As the owner of Making Waves Mental Health, PLLC in Wilmington, North Carolina, board-certified physician assistant and Captain in the Army Reserves, Lindsey Lawrence, PA-C treats patients living with mental health and substance use disorders. Lindsey’s path to psychiatry wasn’t linear—but it has become a calling rooted in compassion, resilience, and purpose.

Finding the PAth

“I had said I always wanted to be a doctor from the time that I was a child,” Lindsey recalls. “I didn’t know of the PA profession until after completion of undergraduate studies from the University at Buffalo, originally planning to apply to medical school. While taking time to determine if that was going to be the best fit for me following graduation, I was employed with an urgent care center, where PAs were practicing medicine.”

After learning more about the PA profession and its flexibility with work-life balance, she decided to apply to Daemen College in Buffalo. Though she initially imagined a future in women’s health, her move to Wilmington, NC, changed that course, instead shifting to work in a community-based mental health position.

What started as a practical career shift quickly became a passion. “It was eye-opening,” she says. “It taught me how to deprescribe benzodiazepines and stimulants when they weren’t appropriate, and recognize chronic persistent mental illnesses, like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. When patients started to improve and express their gratitude, it fueled my passion for this specialty.”

Balancing Care, Family, and Service

With a demanding clinical role and current position in the Army Reserves as the company commander of a Ground Ambulance Medical Company, balance is essential for Lindsey. “Opening my practice in 2023 has allowed me to prioritize working 3.5 days per week to allow for more time at home with my two girls.”

Still, she manages it all through intention and boundaries, ensuring an appropriate balance of work and home life. “Recognizing my boundaries is important to me,” she shares, “ along with ensuring my patients have realistic expectations with my role as their medication management provider and getting them linked with therapy services or community support teams.”

The Power of Listening

Reflecting on her early career, Lindsey says her time working in community-based mental health and a facility-based crisis center taught her the importance of advocacy. “It helped me understand the lack of available resources that people have,” she explains. “To be that voice and advocate for the patient was something that was really important to me.”

She carries that same approach into every patient encounter today. “I try to collaborate with the patient using shared decision-making and motivational interviewing,” she says. “I allow opportunities for them to share and tell their story in their own words. Meeting an individual where they’re at in their life is vital in developing the rapport to be successful in their treatment.”

Screening and Stigma

October marks both Mental Health Screening Month and Depression Awareness Month—a time that aligns closely with Lindsey’s mission. “If you don’t ask the right questions, you may not understand the full picture,” she says. “Sometimes people are afraid to share how they’re doing because of stigma or fear. And all it takes sometimes is just asking the question.”

For many patients, that moment of being seen and validated is transformative. “There have been so many appointments where patients say they just feel better knowing they’re not crazy—that they weren’t making something up, that this is a real thing. That there are other people going through the same things they have.”

A Voice for the PA Profession

As a clinician, Lindsey also advocates for the role of PAs in behavioral health care. “I wish more people would recognize the role of PAs in psychiatric care,” she says. “We can play a vital role in providing care for a very underserved population of people.”

Looking Ahead

Once Lindsey’s children are older and she transitions to a lesser demanding role in the Army Reserves, she plans to continue to promote and work toward the advancement of the PA profession. She hopes to become more involved with the local PA organization and work as adjunct faculty with PA programs, teaching future PA students about the excitement of working as a psychiatric PA.

Thank you to Lindsey for taking the time to share her PA journey!
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