Couples therapists in Reading, PA

I'm a licensed clinical social worker with over 35 years in social services, the last 9 as a licensed clinician. My background spans direct practice, public health, domestic violence services, and end-of-life care. I hold a Master of Social Work and a Master of Public Health. My clinical work draws from Gestalt therapy, Emotionally Focused Therapy, and other evidence-based approaches. I also do end-of-life doula work.

My practice, Empowered Transitions Therapy, is built around the belief that transitions don't just require coping strategies. They require honest reflection, real support, and sometimes a complete rethinking of what you want your life to look like going forward.

I work with adults and couples navigating grief and loss, caregiver burnout, life transitions, domestic violence recovery, and relational conflict. I specialize in complicated grief and work with clients whose losses have been layered, unacknowledged, or unresolved for years. Much of my work centers on women who are in the middle of reinventing themselves and aren't sure yet what that looks like.

I'm direct without being cold. I ask hard questions and I sit with you in the answers. If you've been managing everything on your own and you're tired of it, this might be the right place.

I am curious and validating, providing a nurturing environment to talk openly and honestly about your struggles, strengths, weaknesses, needs, likes, and dislikes. I love helping people explore their unique and particular powers as well as how these powers impact their world and their relationships. As a passionate supporter of those who have been through unjust or otherwise traumatic experiences--including those experiencing discrimination based upon race or gender identity or sexual orientation--I am particularly interested in helping people gain skills for dealing with, and making sense of, the remnants of their pasts.

Having completed Bessel Van der Kolk's Trauma Research Foundation's Certificate in Traumatic Stress Studies in early 2025, I have a strong foundational understanding of the most cutting edge approaches to treating trauma. I am also comfortable using a combination of approaches, including Psychodynamic, Gestalt, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. I received an MSW from the University of Pennsylvania, a psychodynamically focused program, after which I completed Bryn Mawr's certificate program in psychodynamic psychotherapy. I have also completed 1 year of Gestalt Therapy training and the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Immersion Program.

As an LCSW, my training emphasized the role of social environment--from the family to society at large--in how we construct our narratives, enabling me to help you make sense of what in your life is yours to own and what is a product of your environment.

Uncomfortable as they may be, emotional struggles often develop for understandable reasons. They reflect what we’ve experienced, how we’ve learned to cope, protect ourselves, and navigate important relationships over time. And while these patterns may have once served an important purpose and still carry valuable information, they can also keep us tied to past experiences in ways that make it difficult to feel fully present, connected, and grounded in ourselves. Therapy can help us better understand these experiences so that we can move forward with greater flexibility, self-understanding, and connection in our lives and relationships.

I work with clients navigating anxiety, interpersonal or family conflict, life transitions, trauma, depression, OCD, and questions related to identity, relationships, and emotional meaning. I also work with individuals who are simply looking for a thoughtful space to reflect, grow, and better understand themselves.

My clinical work has been shaped by training at the University of Pennsylvania, the Institute for Relational Psychoanalysis of Philadelphia, and experience working across multiple levels of care, including residential and intensive treatment settings.

Hello! I’m Lucas, a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) with nearly a decade of experience helping individuals navigate and overcome life’s challenges. My practice is built on a foundation of person-centered principles and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), ensuring that your care is both evidence-based and deeply compassionate.

Are you taking care of others but don't seem to find the time to take care of yourself? Do you seem strong to everyone else but feel disconnected from the person you used to be? Are you struggling to just survive and breathe? Do you need support managing the role of caregiver, sandwich generation challenges, personal health issues, loss, grief, bereavement, or isolation? Do you face a life transition or transition to retirement? Our time together will focus on finding your strength, building resilience, re-connecting to your own creative spark again. Let's work together to lift your spirits and find some peace.

I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has been helping children, teenagers, and adults for over 25 years. My primary areas of specialization are anxiety, depression, trauma, grief and loss, self-esteem and coping, and ADHD. I believe we all are doing the best we can with the resources we have available. I provide an open, supportive, non-judgmental environment for you to be your authentic self.