About | Ashley Mccune Shyver

I’m Dr. Ashley McCune Shyver, a licensed clinical psychologist with more than 15 years of experience providing therapy in private practice. My background includes specialized clinical training, research, and extensive experience in the treatment and assessment of eating disorders, body image concerns, anxiety, and related concerns.

My work is grounded in the scientist-practitioner model—the idea that good therapy should be informed by research while still recognizing that no two people, and no two paths through therapy, look exactly the same.

Education & Clinical Experience

I earned my PhD in Clinical Psychology, with an emphasis in Health Psychology, from the University of Missouri–Kansas City in 2014. I also hold a Master’s degree in General Psychology from Boston University and a Master’s degree in Counseling and Guidance, with an emphasis in Couples and Family, from the University of Missouri–Kansas City.

My graduate training gave me the opportunity to work across a range of specialized clinical settings, including the UMKC Counseling and Guidance Center, the Kansas City Center for Anxiety Treatment, and Children’s Mercy Integrative Pain Management Program. I also spent much of graduate school working in a private practice specializing in eating disorders, where I gained extensive experience working with eating and body image concerns.

During my PhD program, I was fortunate to be mentored by Dr. Jennifer Lundgren and to work in her research lab, where we conducted research related to eating disorders, body image, and health behavior. Being able to study these concerns through research while also working with them clinically had a significant influence on my development as a psychologist and continues to shape my commitment to evidence-based treatment.

I completed my APA-accredited predoctoral internship at the Dwight D. Eisenhower VA Medical Center. There, I worked extensively with Veterans experiencing PTSD, substance use disorders, and other complex mental health concerns and received intensive training in the assessment and treatment of trauma and substance use. This experience significantly deepened my understanding of trauma, coping, and the many ways people adapt in response to difficult experiences.

I also spent seven years as the Director of Admissions for an inpatient eating disorders program, where I specialized in assessing eating disorder severity and helping individuals and families determine the appropriate level of care. This gave me a particularly strong foundation in understanding eating disorders across the spectrum of severity and continues to inform my clinical work today.

I have been in private practice since 2011 and have worked extensively with adolescents and adults experiencing eating disorders and body image concerns, anxiety, trauma, mood concerns, perfectionism, chronic stress, and significant life transitions. I also have experience identifying and treating OCD symptoms, particularly when obsessive-compulsive processes overlap with eating and body image concerns.

My Approach to Therapy

I primarily utilize Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) while integrating Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), mindfulness-based approaches, and nervous system regulation strategies. I also incorporate Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) when clinically appropriate, particularly when working with anxiety, eating-disorder fears, and obsessive-compulsive processes.

One of my favorite parts of being a psychologist is helping clients understand the why behind what they are experiencing. I believe therapy is most effective when you’re not only learning new skills, but also developing a deeper understanding of how your thoughts, emotions, behaviors, experiences, and nervous system work together.

Education is an important part of my approach to treatment. If we’re going to ask you to do hard things in therapy, I think you deserve to understand why we’re doing them and how they can help. My goal isn’t simply to give you strategies to manage symptoms—it’s to help you better understand yourself and give you tools you can continue to use long after therapy ends.

I believe therapy should be both evidence-based and deeply human—a space where you can feel supported and understood while also being challenged to create meaningful change.

A Little About Me

I’m a Kansas City native and genuinely love KC. I’ve lived, studied, worked, trained, and conducted research throughout the metropolitan area over the course of my education and career, so Kansas City has been a meaningful part of both my personal and professional life. Creating a practice here that feels welcoming, compassionate, down-to-earth, and authentic is important to me.

Outside of work, I’m married with three children and love spending time with my family, all things interior design, and reading—preferably somewhere near a beach. I’m endlessly curious and love learning. You’ll almost always find me listening to a podcast, reading an article, or going down a rabbit hole about human behavior, psychology, or why we do the things we do.

I also love, love, love what I get to do every day. Being invited into people’s lives, helping them better understand themselves, and watching them do incredibly hard things and discover what they’re capable of is something I never take for granted. I feel incredibly fortunate that I get to do work that I find both endlessly interesting and deeply meaningful.

And then there are my beloved Newfies. I’ve had at least one slobbery gentle giant in my life since I was little—and would hate to imagine life without one. These loving dogs provide amazing teachings in patience, humor, and unconditional acceptance,