LCSW-C, 10 years of experience
New to Grow
I’m Sean Butler, a licensed clinical social worker and psychotherapist dedicated to helping individuals and couples navigate life’s challenges with clarity and compassion. My approach is integrative, blending Internal Family Systems (IFS), Gestalt, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACA) concepts to create a safe, supportive space for growth. I work with clients to build self-awareness, strengthen emotional resilience, and foster healthier relationships—both with themselves and others.
In our first session, we’ll take time to get to know each other and talk about what brings you to therapy. I’ll ask questions about your history, current challenges, and goals so I can better understand your unique story. Together, we’ll begin to identify what you’d like to focus on and outline a path forward that feels supportive and achievable. My goal is to create a safe, nonjudgmental space where you feel comfortable being yourself from the very beginning.
What stands out in my work is an integrative approach that meets clients where they are. I draw from Internal Family Systems (IFS), Gestalt, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACA) concepts to help clients develop self-awareness, emotional balance, and healthier connections. I bring warmth, directness, and curiosity into the room, creating a safe space for clients to explore difficult emotions while also focusing on practical skills for daily life. Clients often tell me they feel both supported and challenged in ways that foster meaningful, lasting change.
I work best with individuals and couples who are motivated to explore the deeper layers of their emotional and relational lives. Many of my clients come to therapy feeling stuck in patterns of anxiety, depression, relationship conflict, or self-doubt. Some identify with family-of-origin struggles or the Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACA) experience, while others are seeking greater self-acceptance and emotional balance. Whether you are navigating a life transition, working through past trauma, or striving for healthier connections, I am here to support you in building insight, resilience, and a stronger sense of self.
My work with Internal Family Systems (IFS) has deepened my ability to help clients identify and relate to their inner “parts” with curiosity and compassion, recognizing protectors, managers, and exiles as natural expressions of the self. From a Gestalt perspective, I draw on the here-and-now focus, encouraging clients to notice their embodied experience and experiment with new ways of relating to those parts in session. The Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACA) framework enriches this process by illuminating how family-of-origin dynamics often shape these inner roles, especially patterns of caretaking, fear of abandonment, and difficulty with differentiation. Together, these approaches help clients reclaim self-leadership, integrate fragmented parts, and move toward emotional sobriety and healthier connection with themselves and others.
My experience with Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) centers on helping clients shift from struggling against painful thoughts and feelings to opening up and making space for them. ACT teaches that suffering often comes from trying to control or avoid inner experiences, which can pull us away from what matters most. I integrate this with Gestalt’s focus on awareness in the present moment and ACA’s emphasis on breaking free from survival roles that keep people stuck in fear or control. Together, these approaches support clients in practicing mindfulness, building psychological flexibility, and clarifying personal values—so they can take committed action toward a life that feels authentic, connected, and meaningful.
My experience with Gestalt Therapy emphasizes the importance of awareness, presence, and personal responsibility. I encourage clients to bring attention to what is happening in the present moment—emotionally, physically, and relationally—so they can recognize patterns that may be operating outside of their awareness. Drawing from the ACA framework, I help clients notice how unfinished business from childhood or family-of-origin dynamics often shapes current reactions and roles. In practice, I blend Gestalt’s experiential methods—such as dialogue, role-play, and attention to body language—with IFS’s compassionate parts work, creating opportunities for integration and healing. This process supports clients in developing authenticity, self-acceptance, and deeper emotional connection with themselves and others