Meet Our Team
Cristal Sampson
Owner and Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner
I founded Spirit Clinic 3 years ago to provide collaborative, patient-centered care that helps all individuals live meaningful and balanced lives. My practice is rooted in presence and deep listening, with a focus on understanding each person’s unique challenges and goals.
As a board-certified Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP-BC), I specialize in treating bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety, traumatic stress, neurocognitive disorders exaggerated by trauma, and intrusive thought disorders. I’m particularly passionate about working with individuals who are hesitant or resistant to psychiatric care, especially when it comes to medication management. I also deeply value supporting new mothers navigating post-birth mood shifts, individuals confronting the impacts of intergenerational trauma, and members of the LGBT, queer, and sex-positive communities.
My diverse background includes working in urban teaching hospitals, residential psychiatric programs, community mental health centers, and rural settings. I hold a Master’s of Science in Nursing from Yale University and a BA in Neuroscience and Psychology from Queens College, CUNY.
Outside of work, I enjoy reading and writing poetry, meditating, practicing ancestral veneration, perceiving beauty in unconventional forms, bike rides and exploring fitness and nutrition as ways to improve my health. I’m inspired daily by my toddler, Curie, who reminds me that virtually everything should have Band-Aids on it. I enjoy conversation and catching midday lunches with my partner, Adam. Lately, I’ve been watching The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and forever rewatching Everybody Loves Raymond.
I’ll soon be moving to New Haven and am excited to connect with the local community and explore opening a dedicated office space to continue supporting patients in a warm, collaborative environment. As part of this transition, I am actively working to expand Spirit Clinic with support staff local to New Haven as well as including additional psych providers.
Dominic Warshaw
Care Coordinator
Dominic is a writer, educator, and trauma-worker in New Haven. Their work focuses on voice and safety in institutional settings like shelters and state custody systems. Dom holds an MFA in Poetry from Boston University. They are published in Oxford Poetry and The Augur and were shortlisted for the Calibre Prize in 2025 for their essay Grafting Figs.
Before receiving their MFA, Dom spent years carrying a caseload of housing-unstable youth. In this role, Dom built new systems of care for queer and trans youth navigating housing instability. They co-created a Youth Advisory Board where housing-unstable youth could shape programs and policies that met their own needs. Through these efforts, Dom developed their love for deep, structural work done alongside the people most impacted by a problem.
Dom has lectured widely on trauma-informed care and on best practices when working with queer and trans youth. Recognizing storytelling and poetry as powerful tools for mental healthcare, Dom developed a trauma-informed creative writing curricula for youth in foster care.
Dominic dreams of justice. They believe in people. They are constantly expanding their internal library of silly voices, to the delight of their toddler. And they are so excited to join Spirit Clinic!