A “Real” Therapist     Holistic Psychotherapy
Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Trans Affirmative Practice

Searching for a therapist can be a very intimidating experience….especially if you’ve never been in therapy before. For many people, the initial step of making the decision to seek counseling is a huge one that takes a lot of courage. After you’ve made that decision, though, what’s the next step? How do you find the therapist that’s right for you?
Do you ask your friends, call your insurance company, ask your doctor, or just break out the yellow pages?
I believe the best way to make the best possible decision about choosing a potential therapist is to know in advance what kind of counselor you’re looking for, and then interview several to see what kind of style works best for you, and if you sense the therapeutic “chemistry” that is inherent in all productive therapist-client relationships. This connection is the single most important factor in any successful counseling relationship, and it cannot be gauged by any insurance company, advertisement, or even your doctor. Only YOU will know who is the best therapist for YOU.

A “Real” Therapist…
My style of doing therapy is basically rooted in who I am as a woman… parent… partner…a real person. Although I hold an advanced degree and licensure, which qualifies me as a licensed clinical social worker in the states of New Jersey and New York, what distinguishes me as a therapist is the way in which I connect to my clients. In my practice, I see my clients as healthy, strong, beautiful human beings who are completely capable of finding their own answers to their own problems. As a therapist, my role is to assist my clients in that search…by actively listening, asking the right questions, posing the needed challenges, celebrating their successes and empathizing with their struggles. In my office, you will never feel like a “patient” or viewed as “ill”. In fact, I believe very strongly in the “wellness” of my clients, and have great respect and admiration for the strengths that they build on in the course of treatment.
My clients inspire me! It is an amazing privilege to be entrusted with their hopes, struggles, joys, sorrows, fears…and to assist and support them as they work through issues that they once thought insurmountable!

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Holistic Psychotherapy
The more “advanced” our society becomes, the more aware we are that our bodies, minds, and spirits are integrally connected to each other. We now realize that emotional stressors affect many physical diseases that were once thought of as wholly the domain of the biological system. Likewise, good mental and emotional health are always supported by a sense of spirituality, or connectedness, to something larger than ourselves…be it an organized religion, a personal God, or a less tangible Universal Life Force. My ultimate goal as a therapist is to help my clients develop and integrate all of these manifestations of self…body, mind, and spirit. I will often include different methods of soul searching into my practice to help clients connect to their spiritual selves and incorporate that into their daily lives.
The form that your spirituality takes is unique and personal to you, and can range from devout religiosity to atheism. On a very basic level, it all comes down to the same thing…love…of self, of others, and of the Force that binds us all together.

Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Trans Affirmative Practice
Much has been made recently of “tolerance”….racial tolerance, religious tolerance, and sexual orientation tolerance. “Tolerance” has become a buzzword in political, religious, and social arenas. As a therapist, however, “tolerance” has no place in my practice. I see a person’s sexual orientation as not something to be “tolerated”, but something to be treasured and celebrated!
There are issues affecting the LGBT community that are unique in the challenges they present, such as Coming Out, legitimizing our relationships, creating our families etc. Still other issues may not be significantly related to one’s sexual orientation, but affect the LGBT individual in ways that a heterosexual person may not experience: i.e. Work stress due, in part, to a homophobic co-worker, or relationship problems stemming from the lesbian “urge to merge”.
In any case, as my client, you can be certain that, as an LGBT or questioning person, your identity will neither be ignored nor exclusively focused on, but treated as one of the unique manifestations of who you are as a human being.

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