My name is April McClellan, and I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the state of California. I completed her master’s degree in Marriage, Family and Child Therapy at the University of Phoenix in 2010, and I have over 13 years of clinical experience across a variety of settings (outpatient substance abuse treatment, community mental health, nonprofit, and private practice). I supervise marriage and family therapist and social work interns who are working towards becoming licensed therapist in the state of California, as well as manage clinical supervisors to support clinicians in providing therapeutic support and guidance to severely mentally ill men, women, and children.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
In our first session, we will begin with introductions of ourselves, then I will begin gathering information about what brought the client to treatment. I like to inquire about past therapy experiences, and what his/her experience was like in deciding to seek therapy. I like to put the client at ease and utilize a strength-based approach at the onset of treatment that is woven into every stage of therapy to support client comfortability, rapport building, therapeutic alliance and flow of treatment.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
I believe in working in partnership with my clients, utilizing their strengths and willingness to face challenges and achieve their goals. I embrace the importance of identifying all aspects of a client’s life that impact their well-being including their physical health, support systems, work and/or school environment and faith/spirituality in the therapeutic process.
Describe the client(s) you are best positioned to serve.
I love working with clients who are ready, willing, and committed to doing the work, in treatment, to help them heal their lives. I thrive in tapping into the strengths that clients have yet to tap into and facilitate their growth and development in finding and thriving off of their new found strength.
About April McClellan
Identifies as
Specializes in
Accepts cash
Appointments
VirtualMy treatment methods
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I have been utilizing CBT for more than 10 years to support clients in their quest to change their own lives. Utilizing CBT in treatment supports the client in being able to explore his/her thoughts, feelings, and behaviors and develop effective ways to cope with their lives.
Faith based therapy
As a therapist, I follow the lead of my client and their comfortability in discussing religion and spirituality. As the client leads, my role as therapist is to gather information about the client's religious/spiritual background, current practices, and role of spirituality in the client's life (both past and present).
Family Therapy
I have worked with families for more than a decade. My approach to family therapy is getting to know each person's role in the family, identify the problem behavior and how each family member relates to each other in relation to the problem to help them alter the problem behavior.
Grief Therapy
Grief therapy is a unique therapeutic approach. I provide an atmosphere conducive for clients to share their raw, untapped emotions as they move through the healing process of grief and loss. I like to collaborate with the client on how they want to move forward in creating "their new normal."
Trauma Informed Care
Creating a safe physical, emotional and psychological space for clients is my foundational approach to addressing trauma. My goals is to help the client understand the role of trauma in their emotions, behaviors and thought patterns.