Hello everyone! I'm a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in NY. I received my Masters from Brooklyn College and have been practicing for 7 years. I am also a certified Telemental Health Provider, Certifed Advanced Grief Specialist, and Certified Trauma Treatment Professional. In my experience as a therapist I have worked with adults aged 18-55 in a college setting providing individual therapy services to first-time/transfer/continuing education students from a variety of backgrounds. My approach is person-centered, collaborative, and strength based. I conceptualize collaborating with clients as therapy being the blueprint to personal change in their lives. Therapists are the architects and the clients are the construction workers. Architects don't build your foundation for you. They provide you with the necessary tools you need to use and help you to create the blueprint that you need to follow to help build your strong foundation. With a strong foundation even if the same problem was to present itself in the future, you would already have the tools and the blueprint to know how to address that problem yourself. Therapists simply help you to become your own catalyst for change.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
Starting therapy for the first time can be very daunting so establishing a safe and welcoming space for every client is my top priority. In the first session we will get to know each other and complete an intake to gather general information about diagnostic symptoms and different life areas. We will discuss your presenting concerns and create a person-centered plan to address your goals. We will also review my recommendations which can sometimes include discussing other treatment options if my clinical recommendation is that I am not the best fit to meet your needs and/or require a higher level of care. I also like to leave room at different points in the initial session so that you may ask questions as they arise.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
Two of my greatest strengths in my experience as a therapist are my creativity and my resourcefulness. I pride myself on retaining resources to assist my clients in their learning process such as worksheets, as well as referral sources that are local to their community in the event that they prefer to receive long-term/specialized treatment in person. I was able to hone my referral skills by creating a diverse mental health resource referral book that includes mental health resources for 4 of the 5 boroughs in New York City. It also includes resources for immigration assitance, homeless services, BIPOC specific services, differently abled services, and support groups. As a person of color, I have a commitment to working with clients who are part of communities much like my own that are underserved in the area of mental health. I also have a personal goal to help break the stigma surrounding mental illness in minority communities.