Therapists serving clients in Colonial Heights, VA

Hello, my name is Joe Gasperini. I live in Southern Virginia after having grown up in upstate New York and Los Angeles, CA. I am married and the father of eight children ranging in age from 19 to 43. During my spare time I am interested in activities of my children, sports (especially golf), travel, and insight into social behavior. Therapy is a place where you can feel heard in a supportive, comfortable and warm environment. When life is overwhelming and stressful, or relationships are struggling, counseling can help. As a Licensed Professional Counselor, we will work together to help you reduce the suffering you may feel. I want to hear about what is hurting you and stopping you from moving forward in a happy and positive way in your life. Together we will decide on a plan of action to get you back to where you want to be as quickly as possible and develop a way to keep you there. Due to my very diverse background and having gone through many of life's ups and downs myself, I have learned how best to treat a multitude of life's issues. This helps to come up with effective plans to alleviate problems by understanding where you are coming from. My approach to counseling is interactive, down-to-earth and collaborative. I strive to create a comfortable, non-judgmental environment where you feel free to openly discuss whatever issues you feel most important. Together, we can work to give you the tools you need to create the life you want. I have BS degree in Finance and Economics from Syracuse University and a MA degree in Licensed Professional Counseling from Liberty University. I am also a Certified Anger Management Specialist II. I look forward to working with you.

Venise Darisme, M.A. NCC, CCTP, CMHIMP, LPC, EDIT Certified I - Eating Disorder Treatment Clinician I am a National Certified Counselor (NCC) and Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) with BetterHelp. I am also a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP) and a Certified Mental Health Integrative Medicine Provider (CMHIMP). My CMHIMP training focused on Nutrition for Mental Health. Additionally, I am an EDIT Certified I- Eating Disorder Treatment Clinician. I have a Master of Arts degree in Pastoral Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Marymount University. Marymount University is ranked as the #1 Counseling program in Virginia on universities.com. for 2021. My Bachelor of Science degree is in Psychology with a minor in Biology from Mount St. Mary’s University. I have been in the Human Services field for over 10 years. Over the years I have demonstrated myself to be a dedicated professional with education, experience, and skills in Individual Counseling, eating disorder treatment, Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy, parent training, education counseling, career counseling, play therapy, pastoral counseling-spiritual/religious struggles, grief and loss, multicultural issues, substance abuse, depression, and anxiety. I particularly enjoy working with children and families. I utilize a person centered therapeutic approach while employing behavioral, cognitive-behavioral, creative arts, play, and existential approaches. I am overjoyed to be part of the BetterHelp team.

I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the states of Alabama, Virginia, Georgia, the District of Columbia, and Maryland. My experience includes clinical social work, risk management, regulatory compliance, quality assurance, case management, crisis intervention, advocacy, brokerage, education, and facilitation working with diverse groups of children, adolescents, and adults in medical social work, child welfare, mental health/chemical dependency, corrections, HIV/AIDS, and Veteran Affairs. While working with these clients, I have acquired necessary clinical skills relevant to culturally diverse practice and effective outcomes. I am a well-organized, highly motivated, and an energetic team player dedicated to meeting my clients where they are through both micro and macro level social work interventions. Working in Mental Health for over 12 years, I've learned that people are literally trying to put the pieces of their life together just to make it through the day. Being sensitive to this, I've developed my practice model around the following quote, "We're only as strong as our weakest link; therefore do your best to strengthen someone today!" My goal every day is to strengthen someone (self-included) in some area. Let's Live in Purpose so we can Win on Purpose!

Hello, I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Virginia, I have 8 years of experience in the mental health field . I have worked with individuals with a wide range of concerns including anxiety disorders, trauma, depression, relationship struggles, adjusting to life changes, grief & loss, personal development, self-esteem, and social skills development. My mission is to help others to recognize their strengths, improve their ability to navigate through life’s challenges, and increase their sense of meaning and purpose in life. I am aware that each individual is unique and strive to respect the uniqueness of each client I treat. My counseling approach combines Cognitive-behavioral, emotionally focused therapy, Dialectical behavioral therapy, positive psychology, and trauma-informed therapy. I believe that its important that everyone have the skills to improve their quality of life, and develop effective ways of coping and living. I look forward to working with you !

Hello, INFORMATIONAL RESOURCES can be found on various dedicated Facebook pages based on the topic and on my own YouTube channel for access by clients. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: I am skilled at guiding individuals and couples through a review of • thoughts and behaviors, • history and anticipation, • beliefs and misconceptions, • values and choices, and • goals and objectives toward an increased awareness of options, needs, resources, and results. The application of such knowledge about oneself can lead to choices that are more likely to be experienced as effective, productive, healthier, and rewarding. To provide space for a more structured option I have removed other descriptive information on my profile. That information is readily shared once a client makes a commitment to explore my qualification, style, specializations, and approach before and during the first session, which in part is an interview by the client of myself as a professional of potential selection. PLEASE NOTE In addition to the next section of SPECIAL OFFERING - See the last portions of my profile > DIVERSITY OF EXPERIENCE, > PERSONAL POWER, and > THE PROCESS. A SPECIAL OFFERING of Structure and Focus for an eight-session intensive experience yielding optimized value for your investment of financial resources, of time, of energy, and of attention. Near the end of each month a different Special Offer program is highlighted. This one is offered this last week of September and during October. This program is called "I AM READY" for clients who want an infusion of information, activities, skills and tools, related to their given focus. One can choose to stop at the end of four sessions (Part 1) or sooner if the match of myself as a professional and with you does not feel like a good-enough fit. The goal of the eight-session infusion is to prepare you to move forward with or without a counselor. The infusion offers education, tools, techniques, for more effective coping skills and healthier self-care behaviors - while identifying and naming the critical issues that warrant attention as a pathway to: • increase and apply awareness, • reduce personal barriers or situational roadblocks, • enhance coping and action strategies, • broaden perspectives, • deepen understanding, • emphasize strengths and assets, • develop personal confidence and efficacy, • highlight existing assets and resources, toward the outcomes of • increased gratification, gratitude, desired results, • an orientation of where you are at this time in your life, or regarding certain issues, • a process of defining your goals and objectives, and • a measurable clarity of options related to self-care, coping, direction, and resources. You are not obligated to continue after the fourth session, or even the first session, if there does not seem to be a good fit of my professional style and methods with your expectations, needs and goals. Each client’s feedback is requested during or after each session to assure that I am on course with your goals and needs. Requirements: individuals and couples who can relate to the meaning and desire to improve or integrate the concepts listed below. The “I AM READY” timeframe of 8 weekly sessions (Parts 1 and 2) is designed for people who are ready to engage in the process and participate in what is needed for effective outcomes. Here are some concepts that represent the initials of I AM READY. I – Initiative, Intelligence, Insight, Intrinsic, Interpretation, Integrity, Innovative, Investment, Intention A – Ability, Acquisition, Attitude, Accurate, Action, Affirmation, Application M – Mindfulness, Meditation, Maturation, Meaning, Motivation, Mindset, Mentality, Method, Map R – Real-istic, Renew, Redefine, Relevant, Review, Replace, Rethink, Reason, Resourceful, Retain E – Education, Emotion, Energy, Enough, Expression, Experience, Explanation, Expectation, Evaluation A – Assessment, Access, Accentuate, Assess, Articulate, Attribute D – Determined, Dedicated, Decisive, Development, Daily, Dignity, Deliberation, Diverse, Depth, Durable Y – Why? YOUnique, Yield, YES!, YOU can DO this!, Your Goals. If you are ready to start and commit vs window shop or partially use your subscription due to missed or unscheduled appointments, then count to 10 as you assess your degree of readiness and motivation. Then decide if you are ready or not for the Part 1 - four sessions of assessment, support, and education as a foundation upon which the process will lead you through the subsequent four weeks and into the next chapter of your life. DIVERSITY OF EXPERIENCE and PERSPECTIVES • I have worked with people who struggled with an active addition or who were in recovery from one of the worst chapters of their lives. • I have listened to and supported clients who worked in blue-collar jobs and clients who worked in white-collar positions. • I have provided counsel and education to people who currently or had been employed on Capitol Hill, the Pentagon, and in The White House. • Clients have also included those who have worked at various federal agencies: FBI, NASA, US Border Patrol, and the Secret Service, and active military personnel. • I’ve served clients who were first-responders or first-time parents. • I have guided teens who were in high school or transitioning to the experience of college-related demands. • I have been a bereavement counselor to survivors who faced the death (of various causes, anticipated and unexpected, which can result in “complicated bereavement”) - of a partner or spouse, - a parent, a sibling, a grandparent, - a child or a grandchild – both under legal age and as an adult-child. • I have supported people who have contended with invisible, chronic illness or pain, or who have had deteriorating health, and across different points in the lifespan. • I have been a privileged witness to the sacred, private lives of many people who survived adverse childhood experiences, • trauma as an adult, (military, domestic, and circumstantial: victimization, accidents, work-related or other accidents, hospital experiences, the death of a loved-one, witness a situation involving someone else safety, etc.), • and persons who have contended with gradual or sudden heartbreak and grief, • debilitating and diminishing consequential aspects of an anxiety disorder, • the suffering inherent with mood disorders (episodic or chronic in nature), • and the universal issues of being human combined with the developmental tasks required of continued growth and adjustment. • During college I worked at two summer-camps for four years (in MA and NJ) with people who had developmental disabilities, the under-privileged, and the very privileged. • And I have presented workshops at professional conferences and for agency trainings. PERSONAL POWER includes: 1. an awareness of making a series of choices, 2. resulting in executing a decision, and a direction, and 3. the application of knowing what is required for a desired outcome, with 4. the creative process of exploring or creating options. The PROCESS 1. MAKING A DECISION, 2. CHOOSING A HEALTHCARE PROVIDER, 3. TAKING ACTION ON YOUR DECISION and CHOICE 4. ENGAGING IN THE PROCESS of • UNCERTAINTY, • STRUCTURE, • EDUCATION, • SUPPORT, and • ACTIVITIES for • Desired RESULTS. If you want to interview me during a first session, I can then send you more information about how I see my style and approach (eclectic with life-long learning). And if you decide to continue your search for a better fit with a therapist of your choosing, I genuinely endorse and support that path, by removing your connect to me if that be the case. If that would be your decision, I do ask that each client apply direct communication about intentions or needs so as to • “not fill a seat in my electronic waiting room” by clients who are undecided, • as evidenced by not making appointments, or not keeping appointments, • due to not being ready to start and follow-through, and thus, limiting access to my services of clients who are ready with a plan to begin the process. Please be aware that for each when a client who is passive, dormant, or • inconsistent in scheduling and keeping appointments, • there is a counter-productive influence on my availability to potential clients due to a place being taken on my roster of existing clients. You can choose to disconnect your affiliation with me in order to take action with another therapist and/or return when you are ready and able to engage consistently in the process and service for which you are paying a monthly subscription. Sincerely, Will Perks, MSW LICSW in West Virginia LCSW in Virginia LISW-CP in South Carolina Clinical Social Work licenses are pending in MD, CA and NY

I am licensed in Virginia with 30 years of professional work experience. I have experience in helping clients with stress and anxiety, relationship issues, family conflicts, & trauma and abuse. I work with my clients to create an open and safe environment where thoughts and feelings can be shared without fear of judgment. Taking the first step to sign up for therapy can take courage and I am proud of you for getting started!

I am licensed in Virginia with years of professional work experience in both in-home and outpatient settings. I have experience in helping clients with relationship issues, family conflicts, intimacy related issues, & parenting issues. I work with my clients to create an open and safe environment where thoughts and feelings can be shared without fear of judgment. Taking the first step to seeking a more fulfilling and happier life takes courage. I am here to support you in that process.

I am licensed in Maryland, Virginia, and Oregon with 10 years of professional work experience. I have experience in helping clients with stress and anxiety, relationship issues, motivation, self esteem, and confidence, personality disorders, & depression. I also have extensive experience in working with couples having marital issues. I believe in treating everyone with respect, sensitivity, and compassion. I will tailor our dialog and treatment plan to meet your unique and specific needs. Taking the first step to seeking a more fulfilling and happier life takes courage. I am here to support you in that process.

I am licensed in Virginia with 6 years of professional work experience. I have experience in helping clients with stress and anxiety, trauma and abuse, motivation, self esteem, and confidence, & depression. I believe in treating everyone with respect, sensitivity, and compassion. I will tailor our dialog and treatment plan to meet your unique and specific needs. Taking the first step to seeking a more fulfilling and happier life takes courage. I am here to support you in that process.

I love working with persons going through life transitions and the LGBTQ+ community. I have a passion for working with couples of all backgrounds including poly couples looking for connection and peace. I also work closely with women in and out of relationships. Are you seeking a therapist who can provide an atmosphere where you feel comfortable enough to vent, find relief, and explore your story– however unconventional it may be? Do you crave a space where you can find yourself or be encouraged to be the expert on your life while being held accountable for your goals? If you want to live a life that aligns with your values or true identity while communicating and reinforcing your boundaries, I can help you get there. Together, using strength-based and person-centered therapy with a psychodynamic touch (and a healthy dose of humor), we can build a bond and begin your journey to building the confidence to be who you want to be. Finally feel self-assured in your value and speak up for what you want in your life, relationships, and career. I also come from a military family that has been located throughout the United States, allowing me the opportunity to meet people from varying backgrounds. This has contributed to my ability to become more culturally competent when working with clients. If you’re ready to build a happy, thriving life while being true to yourself, let’s chat today. My Experience I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and have been practicing therapy for 4 years. I obtained a Bachelors in Psychology in 2010 at Eastern Michigan University and completed my Master of Social Work at Johnson C. Smith University, graduating in 2017. When I’m not in therapist mode, I’m... Either out and about on the town attending open mics, enjoying brunch, having fun at concerts or at home , watching the Food Network, cartoons, dramas, and comedies.