Seeking a therapist - need recommendations

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Hi, folks. I am writing because am interested to find a therapist. I would like to work with a provider who is experienced with one or more of the following:

- major depressive disorder
- anxiety disorders
- post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- borderline personality disorder/symptoms
- adult survivors of child abuse (not necessarily sexual)
- LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) people

The provider's age, sex, gender identity, skin color, level of physical ability, etc are irrelevant. The provider's religion is not necessarily an issue, given that they do not believe that non-believers and/or queer people are "going to hell", or otherwise slated for a less pleasant fate than believers.

I would prefer to work with someone who is:

* unfazed by people who are "different". While I am fairly normal-looking, I have experienced homelessness, I am queer, and I have certain beliefs about the power of ritual and the nature of reality which are somewhat unique. While the provider need not be coming from the same place, I believe that I will be best served by receiving treatment from a truly open-minded, accepting provider.

* naturally warm and kind. I am quite sensitive to any level of a brusque, dismissive or judgmental attitude, I cannot tolerate it in a clinical setting. I imagine that discussing the things I need to talk about will be painful; and I believe it will be safest for me to open up to a truly gentle soul.

* extremely intelligent. After several ill-fated attempts at treatment with various providers, I have determined that this attribute is necessary in a provider, in order for me to receive the full benefit of treatment.

* MBTA-accessible, though immediate proximity to Davis Square is not necessary (see below).

I am grateful for your willingness to listen, and I hope you will respond. If you prefer not to respond in an LJ comment, please email me, at [my LJ username]@gmail.com - this may be useful if you wish to recommend a provider outside of Davis Square. Feel free to email me if you would like to receive the list of recommended providers, minus the names of the persons recommending.

I thank you, very much, and I wish you good health.

(Cross-posted to davis_square [here] and b0st0n [here])

Comments

[ron_newman]

I have tagged your post "health care". I don't know if any of the previous posts will directly help you, but it's worth taking a look.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Ron. I had indeed given the tags a look, and I concluded that my needs were different enough to warrant a new post.

[ron_newman]

Not a problem. I hope you get good and useful recommendations from your post. So that this post is helpful to people in the future, could you post the list of recommendations that you get via e-mail, minus the names of the people recommending?

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Certainly, I didn't realize that would be an appropriate use of the community space. I'd happy to make that resource available once the replies seem to have finished rolling in.

[ron_newman]

Thanks. That's one of the best uses we can make of the community space -- 'paying it forward' to future readers.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Word. :)

[ukelele.livejournal.com]

So true. I just used the tags the other day to set up a dentist appointment.

[enhf94.livejournal.com]

http://www.somervillementalhealth.org

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Thanks for this. If you feel comfortable going into detail, I would be grateful to hear whether there is any particular provider at this location whom you can recommend for or against - you could use email if you prefer more privacy.

[magg1es.livejournal.com]

I will second this suggestion. They are extremely thorough and will only place you with a therapist that has experience with, and is good with people, who share your condition, or with therapies that you may need. They're also not afraid of writing referrals to other places if they feel as though they cannot meet your needs.

[zdenka]

I have emailed a link to your post to a friend of mine who is a therapist, in case she can recomend anyone.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

How kind of you; thank you. I'm glad I decided to make the post public. :)

[postrodent.livejournal.com]

You might try Ginger Phakos. I've only been seeing her for a couple of months, but she seems quite okay with a guy who looks twenty years younger than his calendar age, and who lives in a triad with another man and a transwoman. She's also been pretty compassionate with me thus far. I'm not precisely sure what kind of therapist she is; her business card describes her as a "licensed independent clinical social worker".

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Neat. Google didn't turn up a way to contact her, are you able to share that information? (Email is an option.)

[yagagriswold.livejournal.com]

I really enjoyed working with Melinda Mancini, 2557 Massachusetts Ave
Cambridge, 978-369-9938. She's definitely good with anxiety issues. She's smart, down-to-earth, and compassionate. I can't speak to her level of expertise with all of the issues you name, but I'd certainly recommend speaking with her.

Also, I think highly of Eve Goldfarb, who is just steps from the Davis T station. She's smart, warm, and good with people who are "different." I know she treats abuse survivors and I know many, many people who are really happy with her. You can reach her via email at eve@evegoldfarb.com

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Wow, these sound promising. Thanks so much.

[lac.livejournal.com]

I have to second the recommendation for Eve. She is a tremendous person and a wonderful therapist. She immediately sprang to mind when I read your post.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

That's good to hear. Thanks for giving your 'second opinion' on this provider.

This goes for everyone: if someone has already listed the person you were going to recommend, please feel free to mention your support - hearing multiple people speak well of a provider is very useful to me in this process.

[hissilliness.livejournal.com]

Thirded on Eve. She also takes pride in giving good free referrals, if she turns out not to be a match.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

That's great, thank you.

[noire.livejournal.com]

Randi Kaufman (in Harvard square)
617-442100

She does a lot of work with alternative/poly/transgendered/bdsm folk and is completely wonderful.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

I'm glad to hear of her, thank you. Say, that phone number is not complete; can you help? :)

[ron_newman]

This page and this one say the phone number is (617) 441-2100. (That second page may be helpful to you in other ways as well.)

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Hey, thank you, Ron, that's really nice of you, to look up that info. I appreciate it.

[cold-type.livejournal.com]

Add Dr. Jennifer Strong to your list. She has an office on Mass Ave a few blocks from Harvard Square.

Phone: (617) 501-4505
E-mail: Jennifer@jenniferstrong.com
Web site: www.jenniferstrong.com

There's also a pretty good directory of therapists online at http://therapists.psychologytoday.com/rms/prof_search.php
You can search by zip code and specialty.

If you're planning to use insurance, you might check ahead to find out what type of coverage you have and what is covered.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Thanks, cold_type, I hadn't heard of Jennifer. That finder is also excellent, many therapists write an introductory paragraph and it kind of gives you a sense of their perspective and style, which is useful.

For you and everyone else who is replying with help: I'd like you to know that I feel a lot better about all this than I did this morning - I went from "crap, I have no idea who to go to" to having quite a few leads to try. It feels pretty good. Thanks for chiming in - and feel free to keep 'em coming.

[in-parentheses.livejournal.com]

You might add Lisa McDonnell to your list: (617) 497-1150, and her office is in Cambridgeport. She was, in my experience, all the things you described.

Best of luck to you!

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Thank you, that certainly sounds promising. Nice icon and name. :)

[sylphae-minuo.livejournal.com]

Randi Kaufman (Harvard Square) or Monique Noelle (Central Square). They are fine with genderqueer, alternate lifestyles, polyamory, and BDSM issues along with life stuffs( depression, borderline, substance use issues.

Both work well with very intelligent people.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

That's great to hear, thank you.

[modstgodds.livejournal.com]

Susan Teta LICSW
Journeywoman
240A Elm St., Davis Square
Somerville, MA
(617) 776-9232

She is queer friendly, very warm and supportive. I see you have an embarrassment of riches in terms of number of responses but I wanted to add to it anyway. She is in Davis square just above the Social Security Office. I have worked with her for over ten years.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much for suggesting Susan.

>> I see you have an embarrassment of riches in terms of number of responses

Not exactly: there are many responses, true, but most of these providers either do not take any insurance, or do not take my insurance. My budget doesn't allow for ~$400/month in out-of-pocket costs for therapy. The number of providers in this list who are accessible to me is actually quite small. Considering that some of those few are not accepting patients, the chances of a match are smaller than they look. Thus, more answers are very welcome. Thanks again for your reply.

[sylphae-minuo.livejournal.com]

If the combination of insurance/ income along with the need for a alternative friendly person is an issue I would recommend checking out Fenway Community Health.

http://www.fenwayhealth.org/site/PageServer?pagename=FCHC_pro_providers_services

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the recommendation. I must say that I was very displeased with the treatment I received at Fenway; see my comment (http://community.livejournal.com/b0st0n/6290314.html?thread=84200586#t84200586) at b0st0n.

[sylphae-minuo.livejournal.com]

This is unfortunate. I have had no interaction with Fenway, but I know it is a gateway for many people with income issues. Poor quality care causes many people to decide that " therapy does not work for me"

It is unfortunate that many of the decent therapists have to go to private pay because of reimbursement issues. This impacts the need to get a good fit, which is very important with effective therapist client relationships. If you would like me too look into work contacts, please email me at this user name at yahoo.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

>> If you would like me too look into work contacts, please email me

Done. Thank you for the offer.

[moondognight.livejournal.com]

Wow, you sound like me, though I haven't been homeless. Came close once, though.

[lolprivacy.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you're not homeless.

It might interest you to know that on Ron Newman's suggestion, I'll be posting the combined list of names of therapists to this community within a few days.

[justagirlboston.livejournal.com]

I would HIGHLY recommend Dr. Donna Mathias. She is in Brookline, and I'm not sure how T accessable she is, but if you want to call her and check it out, message me and I'll give you her work number.

Great therapist in Davis Square

[littleolivecat.livejournal.com]

Hello,

I have a great recommendation for you. Her name is Susan Teta and she is part of the "Journeywomen" practive in Davis Square. I have been seeing her for a while, and she is very kind and helpful. She is also familiar with abuse, depression, and LGBT issues!