Grief counselors and therapists in Tampa, FL

Hi, I’m Sylvie Silva (she/her), a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) and Certified Gestalt Therapist with over 7 years of experience supporting individuals and families through meaningful, holistic healing. I specialize in working with children, teens, and adults navigating identity, relationships, trauma, and life transitions.

My approach is warm, direct, and grounded in presence. I integrate Gestalt Therapy with Transpersonal, Depth, and mindfulness-based practices, offering a therapeutic space where every part of you is welcome—mind, body, and spirit. Clients often come to me looking for something deeper: healing that’s not just about symptom relief, but about reconnection to self, clarity of purpose, and real transformation.

I am proud to provide affirming care for LGBTQ+ individuals and families, and I center my work around the unique needs and strengths of BIPOC clients. My background includes training in wilderness therapy, Eastern psychology, child-centered modalities, and attachment-focused work. Whether we’re exploring childhood wounds, present-day stressors, or spiritual growth, I meet clients with nonjudgment, curiosity, and a strong belief in their inner capacity to heal.

Drawing from twenty years of experience in education and principal of therapeutic schools, I have developed the art of conflict resolution with reticent learners, with parents, with couples and individuals. I have the skillset to support people and transform their perceptions of self to cope with communication issues, anger, depression, anxiety, self-esteem, and trauma. My empathetic approach offers people to find positive and creative techniques. I am highly gifted in working to establish and enhance relationships between parent and child/husband and wife using conflict resolution to create opportunities. As a clinician of almost ten years, I interact exceedingly well with individuals and couples to support positive communication and achieve personal growth whether it be in a marriage, parenting/school skills, or within oneself. My understanding, compassion, and acceptance of people when they enter therapy create a safe and trusting environment to unpack problems and develop strategies that enhance well-being, stability, and alternative perspectives on how to address struggles/conflicts.

I am an honest and compassionate therapist with a direct approach to therapy. I believe therapy works best when communication is open, clear, and collaborative. I encourage curiosity, openness, and personal growth, and I aim to empower clients to take an active role in their healing and decision-making process.

In the over 18 years of working in behavioral health as a behavior analyst, a licensed mental health counselor, and now as a licensed clinical psychologist, I have had the privilege of collaborating with children, adolescents, adults, and parents in a variety of settings and in various stages of life. Regardless of the setting, what I have found is that we are all attempting to use what we see as our best resources to navigate and improve our world or the world of those that we care about.

I work with individuals and couples who are functioning on the outside but feel stuck, overwhelmed, or disconnected in their relationships. I especially enjoy working with men who want a straightforward approach, couples ready for real change, and women who tend to overfunction and feel exhausted by it.

One of the most empowering factors in my life has been spending 32 years as an Air Force Military Spouse. This empowered me to grow and learn through lived experiences in diverse groups. I’ve been a clinical social worker and prior substance abuse counselor for 30+ years working in a public agency, private practice, and with the US Army at Fort Carson, Colorado and at SHAPE, Belgium. I work across all ages to include both adults and children. In addition to my MSW in clinical social worker, I have an advanced graduate degree in Infant and Early Childhood Special Education Leadership and a doctorate degree in Curriculum and Diversity Studies.