Hello and welcome to my page! I have been in Social Work for the past 6 years and working as a therapist for the past 4. I have worked with a diverse population raging from children to adults with a range of topics needing to be discussed and improved upon. I mainly use techniques centered in CBT (Cognitive Behvioral Therapy) which means I emphasize gaining understanding between one's actions and thoughts. I believe in a client centered, strength based approach which highlights all of your many many positive qualities and applies them to the improvements you are wanting to see. I strive to make all my clients feel as comfortable as possible as I know how difficult the therapeutic process can be. I fully believe the more comfortable you are, the more space will be created for good work to be done. I use a non judgmental warm approach and gain as much understanding for my clients as possible. I know how important a tailored approach is and can adapt my therapy style to fit the correct needs of the client. I hope to speak with you soon!
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
I love introductions! In our first session I want to spend time gaining an understanding of what is bringing you to therapy, whether it is something specific or something you just wanted to try. I will give you ample time to talk to me about some things you have been recently experiencing and ask questions if I need more information. I believe that the therapeutic space should always be client centered and I am there as a guiding point. Whether you are comfortable leading me or need me to step in and help guide you, I am here for you! If we both need a helping guide, I can administer an assessment that will help both you and I understand meaningful information about yourself that may be impacting how you are feeling. I also believe it is important for you to know who your therapist is and will save time for you to ask any questions about myself.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
As a therapist, I believe I have many strengths. My biggest ones being my ability to empathize, adaptability, my warmth and the laid back approach I take into sessions. Empathy is a core standard in my practice. One of the biggest misconceptions i run into as a therapist is believing that therapists have to directly relate to the experiences of their clients in order to do good work with them. I have the understanding that I will never share the experiences of my clients because we are not the same people and that level of understanding may never be there, but what is prominent is my ability to empathize with the feelings my clients are experiencing. When empathizing with someone, we are not saying that we have the same past but instead have shared the same feelings and offer support when experiencing those feelings. As a therapist it is so important that we know how to adapt. As we all know, everyone is beautifully different and there is no one size fits all for how we work with each other! I have gained skills in my career to understand how to approach different sessions and tailor the ways I give therapy to meet you. I have worked with a wide range of people including people formerly incarcerated, people struggling with substance use, college students, children and families in school settings, people who are unhoused, active community members etc, and have proudly formed a strong and meaningful therapeutic relationship with them all and believe my ability to adapt played a huge role in helping me do this. Warmth is something I believe is very important. With warmth comes comfort, and like ive said before, the more comfortable someone is, the more they are willing and wanting to talk about. In my experience, I have had the most successful sessions when the person does not feel judged, knows and understands that this is a safe space for them to express themselves freely and be celebrated for it. I strive to foster a warm environment for every person to feel comfortable being in. I take a laid back approach to my sessions because I believe it humanizes me as a therapist. I do not want to come off as a stoic or robotic person, I also do not want to fill the session with clinical terms where you find yourself feeling like you are in a classroom. Now remember, I'm adaptable so if that's what you prefer then we totally can! But, my initial position will be laid back because I want to create a space where you feel comfortable being yourself!
Describe the client(s) you are best positioned to serve.
In the past 6 years I have worked with people of all age ranges, youngest being 6 years old and oldest being 70 years old. For the bulk of my career I have spent the most time working with people 21 years of age and older but have spent a year working within a Brooklyn middle school. As I feel most experienced working with adults, I do have an in-depth understanding of how to work with children and young adults. Many of the clients who I have had the privilege to work with in the past had been experiencing a wide scope of diagnosis such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, various personality disorders, neurodevelopment disorders, schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders. With all my clients I have been able to form strong rapport which has turned into a strong therapeutic relationship and alliance. I have watched my clients make incredible strides and create and maintain a positive change within their lives.