Lisa Cassidy, LCSW

Who am I?

Hello! I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who works with children, adolescents, and young adults struggling with a wide array of issues such as anxiety disorders, OCD, depression, stress, procrastination, self esteem issues, dual diagnosis, self-injurious behaviors and trauma. I enjoy working with clients who want to discover and harness their strengths, and still be able to joke around when needed!  My goal is to foster your autonomy and help you find the skills that you need to be able to help yourself. I also work with children and their parents through individual and family sessions on topics including, but not limited to: communication, family conflicts, safety planning, and parenting strategies.  I love when clients experience that “light bulb moment” in their therapy journey and shed behaviors or compulsions that have held them back.

I started my therapist journey with earning my Bachelor of Arts in Social Work at Rutgers University and went on to earn a Masters of Sciences in Social Work at Columbia University. I have specialized training in adolescent and child psychopathology, working with military members and their dependents and professional certification in trauma and resilience informed care. I’m a military spouse and understand the stresses of PCS moves and ongoing transitions that come along for military members and their dependents. I’m a cisgender, white female who is LGBTQ+ affirming. All cultures, identities and relationship configurations are welcome in our space.

Some of my favorite approaches include:

CBT(Cognitive Behavior Therapy), just talking it out, motivational interviewing, attachment theory, ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), asking hard hitting questions, exploring shame and empathy through Brene Brown’s work, identifying much needed boundaries, and respectfully challenging your thinking patterns. I like to grab relevant strategies from a variety of approaches because I know therapy is not one size fits all. I do this all with a sprinkle of laughter and support along the way. I incorporate play-based interventions with children in sessions, depending on their age and developmental needs. 

I love working with:

• Individuals wanting to improve self-esteem and implement healthy boundaries
• Stress around athletic performance, internalizing academic pressures and perfectionism
• People experiencing workplace burnout, compassion fatigue or secondary trauma
• Children that believe therapy is boring and (hopefully) changing their mind! Collaborating to help build the confidence to verbalize connections between thoughts/feelings and their behaviors
• Teens who need a place to talk and process what’s on their mind
• Young adults who are learning that adulting can sometimes suck, struggling with developing identity, future goals and managing conflict in relationships
• Adults just trying to get through the day-to-day, navigating through job and family stressors