Nicole is a psychotherapist with a history in business leadership roles, who is passionate about enabling individuals and couples to overcome the effects of trauma and mental health challenges. Her clinical focus includes survivors of trauma, interpersonal challenges (including couples), and professional growth . She partners with her clients to better understand themselves, overcome challenges, and achieve their goals. She feels privileged to be present with her clients in dark moments and creates an authentic connection and safe, warm, empathetic environment. Nicole uses an eclectic approach to therapy drawing from EMDR (Eye-Movement Desensitization Response), DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy), Gottman Couples Therapy, Object Relations, AEDP, Attachment Theory, and Motivational Interviewing.
Nicole is a certified Trauma Counselor and was the Director of Domestic Violence Homicide Prevention Initiative for Safe Horizons where she: lead and coordinated activities of an Interdisciplinary Domestic Violence (DV) High Risk Team charged with ensuring effective protective actions and strategies for clients, provided short term counseling, crisis intervention and advocacy for DV survivors identified as high risk, developed risk management plans with clients, reflecting each client’s unique situation and facilitated team meetings with and training/presentations for law enforcement and social service organizations, In addition, Nicole's interned at the Crime Victims Treatment Center at Mt. Sinai West & St. Luke’s Hospitals where she provided individual therapy to survivors of violent crime to prevent, reduce or eliminate symptoms of PTSD and other mental health disorders using various evidence-based techniques. Before entering private practice work full-time, Nicole worked in the Psychiatric Emergency Room and Outpatient Clinic at Kings County Hospital.
EMDRIA Trained
DBT Certified by DBTNCAA
RATES & AVAILABILITY
- Rates for out-of-network/full fee $300/session
- Click here for Availability & Next Steps to Book
EDUCATION
New York University
Master of Social Work
Clinical Focus in Trauma
CUNY Queens College
Bachelor of Art in Psychology
Minor: Student Services and Counseling
AREAS OF FOCUS
Trauma
PTSD
Couples Therapy
Dating, Friendship and Relationship Challenges
Assertiveness
Issues of Identity
Somatization
Career or educational challenges
Dissociation
Anxiety
Depression
Life Transitions
Stress Management
DBT Skills Training::
- Mindfulness
- Emotional Regulation
- Interpersonal Effectiveness
- Distress Tolerance
RATES & AVAILABILITY
- Rates for out-of-network/full fee $200/session
- Click here for Availability & Next Steps to Book
Vanessa is a mental health counselor who nurtures a genuine connection with her clients with her warm, accepting presence, contagious smile and wonderful sense of humor. Maya Angelou said, “There is no greater agony than bearing the untold story inside you.” Each person’s story shapes who they are, and there are stories that are a burden to carry alone that is relieved when met with empathy. Vanessa considers it to be an honor to be with clients as they share their untold story, gain greater self-knowledge, and manifest the story that is yet to come. Vanessa incorporates a wide range of modalities, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Psychodynamic Therapy and Narrative Therapy. Vanessa welcomes the opportunity to work with clients of all races, genders, sexualities, religions, nationalities/ethnicities, and all relationship types.
Prior to joining Roots and Branches, Vanessa worked in another private practice with individual adults and couples. While in practice there she supported couples experiencing challenges with sex, pre-marital concerns, separation/divorce, and general communication and conflict. Vanessa also worked at CityLink Psychological services where she gained experience with adolescents and knowledge of this crucial period of development. Currently, Vanessa is an active member of the American Counseling Association and the American Mental Health Counseling Association (AMHCA).
EDUCATION
New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development
Master of Arts: Counseling for Mental Health and Wellness
CUNY City College of New York
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology
Penn State
Bachelor of Arts in Accounting
AREAS OF FOCUS
Adolescence
Couples’ Therapy
Trauma
PTSD
Issues of Identity
Anxiety
Depression
Family Dynamics
Relationship Building
Coping skills
RATES & AVAILABILITY
- Rates for out-of-network/full fee $200/session
- Click here for Availability & Next Steps to Book
Sophie is a mental health counselor who sees each clients potential for growth within a safe and honest therapeutic space. She appreciates the risk clients take when sharing their struggles and stories. In honoring that risk, Sophie reminds clients every step of the way of their power. Pain, distress and discomfort can inform us about the ways we see, move through, and live in the world. Sophie encourages clients to explore these pain points and move forward with a new perspective: more in alignment with their values and goals.
Sophie primarily works through an integrated, eclectic approach, incorporating acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), interpersonal therapy, and mindfulness in her work with clients. She helps clients to reflect on the role of early life experiences in current behavior. Sophie also believes laughter is therapeutic, and will find appropriate moments for the occasional corny joke or overly specific metaphor.
Sophie approaches therapy from a social justice framework and trauma-informed lens, acknowledging the structures at play in our broader society. She aims to understand how social inequities and injustice inform the narratives clients bring into therapy. Her experience centers around individuals who struggle with identity conflicts, life transitions, depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicidal urges. She is LGBTQ+ affirmative and racial justice allied. Prior to joining Roots and Branches, Sophie has worked as a Mental Health Counseling Intern at a Brooklyn-based counseling center. She has worked as a Crisis Counselor with the Crisis Textline, and worked as a Program Assistant at Johns Hopkins University.
EDUCATION
NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development
Master of Arts: Counseling for Mental Health and Wellness
Mount Holyoke College
Bachelor of Arts in Psychology
AREAS OF FOCUS
Identity Work
Trauma and PTSD
LGBTQI
Anxiety
Coping Skills
Depression
Self-Esteem
Self-Harm
Relationship Challenges
Life Transitions
Women's Issues
RATES & AVAILABILITY
- Cigna in-network
- Rates for out-of-network/full fee $190/session
- Sliding scale available
- Click here for Availability & Next Steps to Book
Chardonnay Badchkam (pronounced Batch-Kam), also known as Char, is a mental health counselor who serves her clients as both an ally and advocate with her warm, steady presence. Char empathizes, from personal experience, with how difficult it can be to ask for help and how overwhelming it can be to find a counselor who feels like the right fit. Through years of experience as both client and the counselor, it is Char’s firm belief that each client deserves a trusted guide who lets you set the pace and direction on your path towards mental wellness.
In addition to concrete tools and evidence-based practices Char utilizes, she is currently engaged in the study of the psychodynamic school of thought. Of particular interest to Char is the unconscious motives behind thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Perhaps you aren’t certain what is driving thoughts, feelings, or behaviors you’d like to change? Perhaps you’re even uncertain of what brought you to this webpage today? Char looks forward to helping you find clarity, set goals, and take the steps necessary to achieve them.
EDUCATION
Walden University
Master of Mental Health Counseling
South University
Bachelors of Arts in Psychology
AREAS OF FOCUS
Addiction
Anxiety
Anger Management
Coping Skills
Depression
Emotional Regulation
Low self-esteem
PTSD
Stress
Substance Abuse
Trauma
RATES & AVAILABILITY
- Cigna in-network
- Rates for out-of-network/full fee $190/session
- Sliding scale available
- Click here for Availability & Next Steps to Book
Meghan is attuned to the honor of hearing someone’s story, and seeing how each client evolves with that story.. She understands the privilege it is to witness clients grow, heal, and branch out into the most authentic version of themselves. She creates a warm, non-judgemental space, where clients can feel safe to explore their emotions in a creative way. Meghan specializes in teens, young adults, eating disorders, ADHD, and trauma. She integrates DBT (dialectical behvaior therapy), and ACT (acceptance and commitment therapy) with creative arts therapies to facilitate an environment that encourages the client to water their “roots" with intention to create, express, transform, and heal. Meghan believes that compassionate guidance and creative self-expression, can initiate transformation, where one may experience relief from overwhelming emotions, challenging thoughts, and trauma.
In addition to creative arts therapies, Meghan's approach focuses through the lens of acceptance commitment therapy (ACT). She also utilizes mindfulness, and other somatic techniques to illicit a sense of balance and grounding. Meghan has experience interning at Clementine Programs, a residential treatment center for adolescents with eating disorders, where she provided group art therapy, and taught a trauma informed, restorative yoga class. She also completed her field placement at Rockland Psychiatric Center, where she facilitated art therapy with adults with serious mental illness in the outpatient program, The Living Museum. Meghan is a 200 hour certified yoga teacher, and teaches with a trauma-informed lens.
EDUCATION
Roger Williams University
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing / Focus in poetry Core Concentration in Anthropology & Sociology
Hofstra University
Master of Arts in Creative Arts Therapy Counseling
AREAS OF FOCUS
Adolescents
ADHD
Anxiety
Coping skills
Depression
Eating disorders
LGBTQIA+
Life transitions
Self-esteem
Self harm
Trauma
RATES & AVAILABILITY
- Cigna in-network
- Rates for out-of-network/full fee $190/session
- Meghan is at capacity
Adam is a mental health counselor who fosters partners with his clients using empathy, compassion, and acceptance as guiding principles. As someone who navigated the sometimes rough waters of understanding his own asexual, biracial identity, he seeks to be a guide and ally to those exploring their own identity. Adam also defines as a sex and trauma therapist.
For better or worse, few things have as much impact on us as our interpersonal relationships and traumas. Through the idea that we cannot change what has happened to us, but we can change what we do with it, Adam aims to empower clients and help them to overcome the obstacles in the past and present to aid them in achieving the goals and desires they have for themselves. Adam uses an eclectic approach to therapy centered around a person-centered, existential approach, and incorporates psychodynamic techniques, DBT, narrative reconstruction, and CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) skills.
Adam has a background working with a diverse population of clients. Prior to joining Roots and Branches Adam worked as a counselor for a wide variety of settings, including private practices, schools, community counseling centers, and non-profit organizations. Through these experiences Adam has worked with children, teenagers, and adults of all ages and backgrounds. He has provided support to people who are struggling with depression, anxiety, identity exploration, life transitions, phobias, sexual dysfunction, and relationship struggles.
DBT Certified by DBTNCAA
AASECT certification in process
EDUCATION
Brooklyn College
Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling
Virginia Commonwealth University
Bachelor of Science in Psychology
Bachelor of Science in Physics
AREAS OF FOCUS
Anxiety
Depression
Dating, Friendship, and Relationship Challenges
Grief and Loss
Issues of Identity
LGBTQIA+
Life Transitions
Sex Therapy
Stress
Trauma
RATES & AVAILABILITY
- Cigna in-network
- Rates for out-of-network/full fee $180/session
- Sliding scale available
- Click here for Availability & Next Steps to Book
Dilara is a somatic psychotherapist, who cultivates an environment that fosters curiosity, growth, and radical acceptance of self. Working with Dilara will show you the profound transformative impact of connecting with your body. Often clients have, through therapy or introspection, acquired an intellectual knowledge of themselves and their desired world, but find that they are still feeling stuck in painful memories, cyclical experiences, or emotional dysregulation. This can be tiresome loop, often resulting in disconnection from both self and others. Dilara can help you embody your authentic selves and values. Through integration of mind, body, and soul, Dilara will be your guide on a journey to enhance your self-awareness, map behavior patterns, release emotional blockages, nurture a serene connection to the present moment, and transform traumatic stagnancy into growth-oriented energy. If your challenge is an overwhelming, triggering environment, Dilara can help you to adjust out of a state where you are reactive to external stimuli, and into your body, allowing you to tune into your internal experience and resources.
Dilara uses an eclectic therapeutic approach through a blend of psychoeducation, somatic awareness, mindfulness skills, and talk therapy. Grounded in evidence-based methodologies like Dance/Movement Therapy (DMT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), and motivational interviewing, she applies these approaches through a person-centered lens, emphasizing social justice framework and trauma-informed perspectives in her practice. Dilara embraces the chance to collaborate with clients of every race, gender, age, sexuality, religion, nationality/ethnicity, and relationship type. She encourages you to come as you are.
Dilara carries experience in working with individuals across various age groups, addressing a diverse range of inner challenges including trauma, depression, anxiety, pain management, grief and loss, conflict, identity, self-esteem, as well as relationship and intimacy concerns. Her background includes working at a domestic violence shelter, where she facilitated group and individual therapy for children, adolescents and adults. She additionally facilitated group therapy sessions at a suicide prevention center for Latinx teenagers. Furthermore, Dilara creates embodied wellness workshops for communities incorporating an earthly, ancient movement modality known as belly dance, to delve into the emotions within the body, particularly focusing on the exploration of divine feminine energy.
EDUCATION
Sarah Lawrence College
Master of Science: Dance/Movement Therapy
University of Greenwich
Bachelor of Arts: Media and Communications
AREAS OF FOCUS
Teens and Emerging Adults
Global Majority
Somatic Awareness
Wholeness/ Self-actualization
Trauma
Depression
Oppression
Couples Therapy
Sex Therapy
Relationship Challenges
Life Transitions
DBT Skills Training:
- Mindfulness
- Emotional Regulation
- Interpersonal Effectiveness
- Distress Tolerance
RATES & AVAILABILITY
- Cigna in-network
- Rates for out-of-network/full fee $180/session
- Sliding scale available
- Click here for Availability & Next Steps to Book
Betsy is a Mental Health Counseling Intern attending New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. Betsy sees herself as a facilitator of change supporting clients in making real-life transformations. Through non-judgmental exploration, she empathetically collaborates with her clients to identify opportunities for growth. Together you will journey through the recent and distant past to define and clarify triggers, emotions, relationships, and patterns that shape your life. Betsy fosters clients’ strengths and tailors her approach to each client’s comfort with a focus on intersectional identities, and cultural background.
Betsy draws from a range of trauma focused modalities in her work with clients. She will be co-facilitating our DBT Groups this fall and thereby will be well versed in DBT skill building.
Before beginning her clinical training, Betsy was an account executive and manager in public relations, where she learned firsthand about the demands imposed on today's business professionals. Betsy also serves as a Crisis Line Advocate for a non-profit dedicated to helping survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. On the crisis line, she listens without judgment and advocates on behalf of each person. Through her clinical training, she believes that learning to non-judgmentally recognize and accept your current reality for what it is the first step toward growth.
EDUCATION
NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development
In Progress: Master’s Degree: Mental Health Counseling (expected 2024)
Occidental College
Bachelor of Arts, English and Comparative Literature
AREAS OF FOCUS
Anxiety
Coping Skills
Depression
Domestic Violence
Identity Work
PTSD
Stress
Relationship issues
Career Counseling
Sexual Assault
Trauma
Life Transitions
AVAILABILITY & RATES
- Rates $30-$50/session
- Betsy is an intern and not eligible for insurance reimbursement
- Betsy is at capacity
34 Plaza Street East, Suite P109, Brooklyn, New York 11238 646-490-1930 CLIENTCARE@ROOTSANDBRANCHESTHERAPY.NYC
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