Supporting Your Mental Health
We're Here to Listen
Supporting Your Mental Health
We're Here to Listen
We're Here to Listen
We're Here to Listen
We are currently accepting new clients.
Going to therapy can feel very overwhelming and vulnerable for so many people, especially when going for the first time. It takes a lot of courage and strength to take the first step. Whether you struggle with mild depression or anxiety, or pervasive mental health concerns that negatively affect your live in profound ways, we can work with you in a judgment free, affirming and inclusive environment. We respect individual autonomy and work to empower and uplift everyone we meet. We acknowledge and accept that there are many different ways for an individual to identify and we appreciate and embrace diversity in the ways that our clients understand their sense of selves and we celebrate these differences. We also understand that we are all a sum of our experiences and these experiences can shape the way we view the world and help to shape our values and morals and inform the development of our collective identity. We are trauma informed and understand how a trauma history can affect, change and influence perspectives and how the perspectives can impact and influence our values and morals. We understand that gender and sexual identities are often fluid and sometimes reside on a spectrum and intersect with every other aspect of our lives, the people in our lives and the institutions and communities that we belong to.
When you have decided that there are some mental health concerns in your life that you need to address, when life feels like it is out of control and the symptoms seem to be so overwhelming and you are feeling lost in the dark, we are here to work with you. Acknowledging the fact that you might need help and reaching out are the first steps to healing. This is a big step in the right direction and can and will lead to greater insight and understanding, a shifting of perspective and much needed growth and healing.
We come from an integrative, client centered, trauma informed perspective with all of our clients and believe that you are the experts in your own lives. We can work together collaboratively in developing a treatment approach with you that will best assist you in obtaining your objectives and meeting your treatment goals.
We will always support you and assist you in any way that we can in the service of your healing so that you can experience a better quality of and a more fulfilling life. We will always stand with you in the face of adversity and injustice. We will always be an advocate for you and for our community in the service of equality and social justice.
It is increasingly difficult in todays world to experience life without having some significant and distressing traumatic event occur in our day to day. Trauma is defined as a distressing event, which is usually something that overwhelms our ability to cope with the event as it happens. Trauma is the lasting emotional response that often results from living through a distressing event. Experiencing a traumatic event can harm a person's sense of safety, sense of self, and ability to regulate emotions and navigate relationships. There are three main types of trauma: Acute, Chronic, or Complex. Acute trauma results from a single incident. Chronic trauma is repeated and prolonged such as domestic violence or abuse. Complex trauma is exposure to varied and multiple traumatic events, often of an invasive, interpersonal nature. We are trauma informed clinicians with specialized training in the areas of trauma and trauma narrative work. We work together with you to address, process and move on from trauma, we help you deal with the associated flashbacks, dissociation and the emotional response to the triggers.
401 New Karner Rd
Suite 303
Albany NY 12205
We believe that identities are complex and expansive and are largely informed by our understanding of who we are in the context of the world. Identity is often not linear, but rather a culmination of our experiences, values and our morals. We can work with you in your efforts to understand and embrace your uniqueness.
Transgender, gender nonbinary and other individuals who reside within the gender spectrum usually have unique concerns related to their gender identity especially young people who are trying to figure out who they are. We understand these unique concerns and appreciate the challenges that exist. We can work with you as you face these challenges and assist you in developing a healthy sense of self.
Often times when someone identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, polyamorous, asexual, demisexual, to name only a few of the expansive identities that exist, they may have a difficult time understanding what this means for their lives. Often discrimination, rejection and judgment can come along with these identities and could lead to pervasive mental health concerns
Many individuals can easily recount at least one traumatic experience in their lives, if not more. These events overwhelm ones ability to cope with the situation and process the information as they are experiencing these events. If these traumatic events are not processed, they can cause significant distress later in life. We work with the trauma narrative to process and reduce this distress
Borderline is one of the most difficult and pervasive mental health issues to deal with. Borderline is sometimes a direct result of trauma. Its presentation of the fear of abandonment, pervasive and unstable sense of self, splitting, turbulent relationships and the engagement in self destructive and self injurious behaviors can lead to a life of misery. But remission is possible.
Dissociation is often a result of trauma and other events that have caused us to feel overwhelmed and overly distressed. It can make us feel like an outside, third, party observer of our own lives. We can "zone" out because the memories are too painful to deal with. It is the minds way of protecting itself. This can be activated by many different triggers, memories or flashbacks.
Sometimes when someone is struggling with profound pain, they will engage in self-injury, such as cutting, burning, biting, head banging, hair pulling and other acts that will produce physical pian allowing them to feel something other than emotional pain. This is often a method of trying to ameliorate internal pain. These are not always suicidal actions, but can unintentionally lead to death.
Sometimes people begin to feel so hopeless and alone, so incredibly exhausted with having to deal with ongoing depression, sadness and emotional pain every single day, that it becomes so hard for them to think that things can get better. Sometimes they don't feel like they have the energy to go on, so they seriously think about ending their lives. There is help. And things do get better.
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurological and developmental disorder that affects how people interact with others, communicate, learn, and behave. Although autism can be diagnosed at any age, it is described as a “developmental disorder” because symptoms generally appear in the first 2 years of life.
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is one of the most common mental disorders affecting children. Symptoms of ADHD include inattention (not being able to keep focus), hyperactivity (excess movement that is not fitting to the setting) and impulsivity (hasty acts that occur in the moment without thought). ADHD is considered a chronic and debilitating disorder and is known to impact the individual in many aspects of their life including academic and professional achievements, interpersonal relationships, and daily functioning.
Hyperactivity refers to excessive movement such as fidgeting, excessive energy, not sitting still, and being talkative. Impulsivity refers to decisions or actions taken without thinking through the consequences
Inattentive refers to challenges with staying on task, focusing, and organization.
This type of ADHD is diagnosed when both criteria for both inattentive and hyperactive/impulse types are met.
Neurotypical refers to individuals of typical development, and intellectual and cognitive functioning.
Copyright © 2024 Identities Counseling - All Rights Reserved.
We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.