Psychotherapy for New Yorkers who want a therapist that does more than just listen.
About me and my practice
I find that people often come to me with some version of “stuckness”—whether that is a couple or family having the same fight over and over, finding oneself repeatedly in the same kinds of relationships, or feeling lost and without direction. I believe that everyone’s feelings and behaviors, as confounding as they may be on the surface, are rooted in something real and valuable. Our feelings and patterns give us important data on what we’ve needed for protection in our lives, and through a close relationship with my clients, I can be an active partner in helping them discover how to no longer have that protection keep them from what they want in life.
Impactful therapy starts with a strong relationship between the therapist and her client built on compassion, trust, and mutual respect. Though I am an expert in psychotherapy, I relish the surprise in learning something new from each client I have the privilege to connect with. Before entering private practice, I worked for several years in medical environments including hospitals and hospice care. There, I often saw how grief, trauma, life experiences, and personalities of patients were pathologized and how the impulse toward categorization and order could cloud the judgment of a clinician and tarnish their ability to see their patients holistically. At the core of my approach is my openness to clients and my respect for their ideas and processes.
Read more here about what I’m currently thinking about in my therapy sessions.
Your life doesn’t happen in a vacuum and neither should your therapy
Culture and our identities including our size, gender expression, race, sexuality, class, and ethnicity affect our everyday interactions at both personal and systemic levels whether we hold relative power or not. Given this reality, I believe it not only important, but essential for me to weave political realities into effective therapy. I take seriously that clients with identities different from my own should not have to wonder about my politics. Without challenging myself as a clinician to constantly learn more about oppressive systems, cultures other than my own, and my own whiteness, therapy would be like trying to put the puzzle together for my patients with only half the pieces. Our lives happen in the context of larger forces and realities, and so should therapy.
I welcome the opportunity to work with a wide range of people, such as:
Adult Individuals
Couples (Dating, Engaged, Married, Separated, Interracial, LGBTQ+, Kink, Monogamous, Non-Monogamous, and those in the process of uncoupling)
Adult Families
In a warm, safe environment, we can explore a variety of topics, including but not limited to: relationship issues, family conflict, anxiety, depression, panic attacks, loss, divorce, and other life transitions. I work with clients to disrupt unhelpful patterns, heal wounds, and find creative approaches to life’s challenges. Great therapy also makes space for play and celebration. Of course revisiting pain is a part of therapy; however, I find the growth and authenticity in the work to be inherently joyful.
Services
*Please note, I only offer therapy for adults and no longer work with children or teens.
Initial Session:
1 hour intake session to learn about each other and determine if it’s a good fit.
Individual Sessions:
45 minute private therapy session
Couples / Families Sessions:
1 hour private therapy session
The foundation of my training as a therapist is in art therapy. Art making can be a powerful therapeutic tool to be used in tandem with talk therapy as a way to explore an idea or feeling with more than just language. Art therapy is an offering for all of my patients, though never a requirement.
Art Therapy:
Like many qualified mental health professionals, I am not in-network with any insurance providers. Though I do not accept insurance, I do take seriously the financial commitment of therapy for my patients. I work on a sliding scale and relate to fee as an open and welcome conversation. It is helpful to the therapeutic work to feel invested, but not strained.
I provide a monthly receipt that has the appropriate coding for submitting health insurance claims.
Fees and Health Insurance Reimbursement:
Location
My office is located in Cobble Hill Brooklyn, making therapy easily accessible from Boerum Hill, Carroll Gardens, Downtown Brooklyn, Gowanus, and Brooklyn Heights with quick access to the F, G, 2, 3, 4, 5, R, A, and C trains.
162 Court St, 2nd Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Hours
Monday–Friday
How to start
Effective therapy starts with a good fit. To see if we might be a good match, feel free to send me an email or fill out the form. The first step will be to set up a complimentary 10-15 minute phone call where I can learn more about your search for therapy and can answer any questions you may have about me or the process of therapy. Whether I’m the right fit for you or not, I am dedicated to responding quickly to inquiries and pointing folks in a helpful direction to connect with therapy that is right for them.
nora@noradankner.com