Headshot of Denise Donaldson, LCSW_C
Denise Donaldson
LCSW-C, CCTP
Maryland

In-network with

Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Cigna, Oscar Health, Oxford, and United Healthcare

Specializes in

Anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, Depression, PTSD, and Substance Use / Addiction

Great to meet you!

I became a clinical social worker when I got my Master's degree from Fordham University in 1998. I have worked in private practice, substance abuse, psych hospitals, schools, foster care, adoption, HIV/AIDS, crisis intervention, work with clergy, cancer care, crisis intervention, and community mental health. Having a diverse experience of people, environments, treatment strategies, and training benefits my clients because I can tailor customized therapeutic experiences.

A bit about my approach to therapy

You have a different story, and I will take careful time and attention to get to know you in our initial meeting and as we move forward with each session. I like therapy to feel like a conversation, not just an intervention. And over time, as you share more and more of your core self with me, I can pull from various therapeutic models to help you ground, elevate, heal, learn, relate, express, and make changes in new ways that feel congruent with your unique core self.

What you can expect from our first session

I encourage my clients to start with the "how" and eventually move toward "why." We will seek some relief in the early sessions by talking about "how" you can make some shifts to start feeling better. Once there is a bit of stability, we can dive into "why" this all happened in the first place—and even look forward to "where" you can go from here! So the first "how" is "how do I make an appointment"....ready? Click a time on the sidebar and schedule your first session. I can't wait to meet you!


Denise's style is

Direct
Humorous
Affirming

Insurance carriers Denise accepts

Aetna
BlueCross BlueShield
CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield
Cigna
Oscar
Oxford
UnitedHealthcare

More about Denise

MSW (Master of Social Work) at Fordham University
License type: LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker - Clinical)
Gender: Cisgender Female
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Languages: English
Works with: Adults and Seniors
More specialties: Family Issues, Women's Issues, Grief, Loss, Relationship Issues, Stress, Trauma, and Anger Management
Modalities: Mindfulness-Based (MBCT), Attachment-based, Behavior Modification, Psychodynamic, Cognitive Processing (CPT), Motivational Interviewing, Cognitive Behavioral (CBT), Gottman Method, Solution Focused Brief (SFBT), Strength-Based, Trauma Focused, Interpersonal, Interpersonal, and Dialectical Behavioral (DBT)