Therapist Rodney Black Photo

Rodney Black, LCSW, LISW

Addictions LGBTQ+ Trauma, Abuse Anger management Coping with life changes
Video Phone Live Chat Messaging

About me

I am currently licensed in Iowa and Nebraska with over 26 years of professional work experience. The bulk of my career has been in community-based settings as I felt this type of setting was where I could give back to those that have helped me and my family of origin. I had a mother that was bi-polar and had a significant borderline personality disorder. Her first major hospitalization occurred following my birth. I have grown up in the Midwest but have lived in California and South Carolina as well as serving in the US military with one deployment to Afghanistan in which I served as the highest-ranking enlisted member of the Human Intelligence component of a Brigade Combat Team. I have a grown gay son and feel that my own healing process in coming to terms with my feelings toward my mentally ill mother were greatly facilitated by friendships in the queer community and feel a great depth of gratitude and respect for this community. I have been divorced, struggled with my own addiction, co-dependency and mental health issues throughout my lifetime and have carried various mental health diagnoses at different times in my life as well. I don't look at myself as complete expert on life but to quote Brene' Brown: "I might just be a little further down the road in recovery is all".
I view therapy as more of an art form in that there are skills and techniques that can be learned and applied to the work of art that is being created, but it is the process involved that brings out the beauty of the final product. I understand the importance of being heard and feel that a person’s truth can emerge through a collective experience in the interaction and engagement with another human being. I hope to bring my experience in life and working with others to your life experience. I view it as a privilege to be able to be a part of the understanding of another person’s life and hope to be part of this journey with you.

Professional experience

26yrs in practice
Addictions LGBTQ+ Trauma, Abuse Anger management Coping with life changes

Additional areas of focus: Self esteem, Career difficulties, Aging and Geriatric Issues, Codependency, Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD), Drug and Alcohol Addiction, Emptiness, Family of Origin Issues, Fatherhood Issues, Gender Dysphoria, Guilt and shame, Isolation / loneliness, Life purpose, Men's issues, Midlife crisis, Military and Veterans Issues, Personality Disorders, Self-Harm, Self-love, Sexuality

Clinical approaches: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Attachment-Based Therapy, Client-Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT), Existential Therapy, Jungian Therapy, Mindfulness Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Narrative Therapy, Solution-Focused Therapy, Trauma-Focused Therapy

Services offered

Video
Phone
Live Chat
Messaging

License information

OR LCSW L14200

IA LISW 01073

NE LIMHP 3120

Reviews

These quotes represent just a few of the many positive reviews that we have received for Rodney Black. We don't pay anyone to provide their review and they are all made voluntarily. Some people's experience receiving therapy with BetterHelp might be different.

I’m appreciative him as a therapist

Written on Apr 01, 2024 after therapy with Rodney for 2 months on issues concerning stress, anxiety, relationship issues, self esteem, career difficulties, compassion fatigue, and adhd

Amazing guy

Written on Mar 25, 2024 after therapy with Rodney for 1 month on issues concerning depression, relationship issues, and intimacy-related issues

Rodney understands, he can joke, he relates, gives the greatest advise I could ask for and there's a sense that he genuinely cares about his client. On my second session with Rodney tonight and I really feel like he helped me turn a corner.

Written on Mar 08, 2024 after therapy with Rodney for 2 weeks on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, relationship issues, trauma and abuse, anger management, and adhd

Rodney is great at sifting through my thoughts and making points coherent. He is easy to talk to and makes me feel comfortable.

Written on Feb 28, 2024 after therapy with Rodney for 1 month on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, addictions, lgbt, relationship issues, family conflicts, trauma and abuse, grief, intimacy-related issues, sleeping disorders, self esteem, bipolar disorder, coping with life changes, coaching, compassion fatigue, and adhd

I love Rodney. He’s a good listener, is knowledgeable and empathetic.

Written on Feb 23, 2024 after therapy with Rodney for 4 weeks on issues concerning depression, stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, and adhd

I'm delighted to have worked with Rodney Black, and can recommend him with confidence. He has an excellent understanding of human experience that allows him to be helpful in a great variety of issues. His easy-going and compassionate manner immediately set me at ease about returning to therapy after many years, and his insight has been really beneficial to my process.

Written on Feb 07, 2024 after therapy with Rodney for 1 month on issues concerning bipolar disorder