Lisa M. Cavallaro LMHC

Therapy sessions can be viewed as a time to problem-solve what concerns you have. At each session, during discussions with me I will analyze where you stand and the status of the issue that brought you in. Therapy is an incremental process that happens with time and growth, and each therapy session serves as a step in your progress. During therapy, you can talk about anything that is on your mind, and I will listen. You can speak openly and vulnerably about yourself; your conversations with me are confidential. After you discuss your feelings and thoughts, I may provide you with some insight in response or help you deconstruct and synthesize what you just shared. I may also give you a task or something to think about if it appears important for your progress. Overall, during therapy you will be able to discuss and disclose whatever is bothering you and receive constructive feedback to help you improve your mental health.

What you think and do affects the way you feel. I provide cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) which is present focused and works with thoughts and feelings in the present moment (here and now). I will explore different parts of a situation you would like to work on to get a better understanding for example: your thoughts- what was going through your mind, emotions- what were you feeling, bodily sensations- what was going on in your body- for example- stomach aches, sweating, nervousness, behaviors- what did you do ? how did you react? Sometimes people get stuck and CBT is finding out what is keeping you stuck and making changes in our thinking and actions to improve how we feel. I provide collaborative talk therapy, education and homework assignments which will require your active participation for this to be helpful for you.

My counseling approach is patient-centered, solution focused and collaborative. I will meet you where you are without judgement and provide a safe place to discuss your issues and concerns. Our counseling sessions will focus on where you are in the cycle of change. Whether you are ready to make changes, want to talk about making changes or unclear as to what you would like to change, we will start where you are at. At the beginning of therapy, it is important to think about your goals for counseling. I will collaboratively work with you to develop treatment plan goals and provide you with a goals sheet that we will review to help you measure your progress and stay on track through your counseling experience.

• New York, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, 005949

I started my counseling career as a substance use disorder (SUD) counselor working in an out- patient clinic and obtained my training and certification in substance use disorders and also counseled clients for codependency/family related concerns individually and in a group setting. I have a mix of experiences working as a prevention education counselor in a college setting and behavioral health case manager in managed care organizations working with severe mental illness and SUD clients telephonically. My clinical training in mental health provided me with an experience working with women who needed education regarding what is a healthy /unhealthy relationship how to identify and obtain skills in communication and healthy boundary setting. I provided a lot of psychosocial education through groups and individual sessions to help identify healthy and unhealthy behaviors and safety planning. In my private practice, I worked with clients who were going through various life transitions regarding work stress, relationship changes/challenges, codependency and grief and loss. I found that clients who completed CBT homework assignments such as journaling thought records were able to discuss in sessions events, thoughts, feelings ,actions and results. They came to realize that it is not the situation that makes one feel a certain way but how one interprets or thinks about a situation which influences how one feels. Through talk therapy and homework assignments, my clients were able to start to change their negative perceptions.