I received my Master of Social Work from Simmons in 1996 and reside in Massachusetts. My entire career has been community and relationship based. I have worked in therapeutic schools, with elders at risk, the early head start program. I am a licensed social worker in Massachusetts and Maryland. The past 15 years I spent working with families and clients in the community who were managing chronic mental illness while trying to maintain as much independence as possible. I am a family member, a professional, a community member who values the creation of a trusting, confidential, and professionally bound client /social worker relationship.

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

I look at a first meeting as therapeutically business. Let's first help each other make sure we have attended to the business items put forth by our professional contract. And we will determine where and how you want to begin. If you don't know then I'll ask some questions so we can determine a pace, tone and communication pattern that may work for us recognizing that we are at the beginning of building a trusting therapeutic relationship. You may have written some things on your intake that you'd like to expand upon or clarify immediately. Perhaps you have some questions for me too.

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

I am committed to my own professional and personal growth which enhances my professional perspective. Folks have told me I am easy to talk to and they appreciate my ability to listen, compassionately question and help them set manageable short term, mid term and long terms goals using my professional training and our shared understanding of your situation. I am have years of experience modeling professional boundaries within the therapeutic relationship to help folks see that boundary setting for themselves can be done compassionately.

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

I believe I have the capacity to help those who are willing or want to consider as we develop our therapist/client relationship what it might feel like to work within a framework that "...grant [s] ... the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference" (a version of quote attributed to R. Niebur) I recognize that this quote is often attributed to an addictions treatment model (professional experience) and has spiritual undertones . No matter the treatment model I find that looking at "willingness " creates a baseline for a discussion of a client's place as the center of all of the other overlapping life systems. I am not trained in a spiritual model but welcome a client's perspective and experience towards my self education and professional ability to help clients feel comfortable bringing those experiences into our meetings which would enable us to find ways to incorporate spirituality into our work together.

About Marla Ker