I am an Social Worker with almost 20 years of experience working in California and Maryland. I've worked in many settings including schools, hospitals, and grief care. I grew up overseas and have an awareness of culture, and cultural effects on mental health. I have helped clients with grief, adjustment to life changes, immigration stressors and adjustment, parenting, especially new mothers, as well as anxiety and distorted thinking around anxiety. My counseling style is warm and supportive and I believe in helping my clients find their strengths and their solutions. I use modalities from Acceptance and Commitment therapy, client centered and cognitive behavior therapy. I look forward to being your ally and working with you!

What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?

in our first session we usually discuss the general issues that have led someone to seek out therapy at this time, as well as some of the history around these issues. We will discuss ‘compatibility of fit’, as well as what general things we feel will need to be explored and worked on during future therapy sessions. I do not believe my role is to tell clients what the issues are, and not needs to be ‘worked on’, but instead this is a collaborative effort which is integral as part of developing and building the therapeutic relationships.

Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.

A lot of my most recent professional experience has been addressing issues around grief, especially in working in hospice and Palliative care the last few years. Issues around anxiety and coping with ongoing chronic medical issues were also issues that presented during my work in these fields. Before this I had experience working in a Maternal child health setting, and provided support around adjusting to parenting, as well as other ongoing issues around adjustment.

Describe the client(s) you are best positioned to serve.

I work well with curious, open minded clients who are open to exploring not only how their personal history affects them, but are also open to change behaviors and thought patters that resulted from these, in order to understanding themselves better. I also believe in encouraged clients to challenge themselves and explore being a little uncomfortable, towards making changes, that I truly believe help them improve their overall mental health.

About Talya van den Berg