Rachel Hirshberg
Associate Clinical Social Worker
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Bachelors in Developmental Psychology with a Minor in Art Therapy from Lesley University
Masters in Social Work New York University Silver School of Social Work
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Art Therapy
Play-based therapy
Affirmative Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Collaborative Problem Solving
Family Systems Therapy
Motivational Interviewing
Narrative Therapy
Racially Inclusive Psychotherapy
Solution Focused Therapy
Trauma Informed Therapy
Humanistic Therapy
In my twenty years of serving children, teens and families, I have found that through intelligent, compassionate inquiry people can achieve great things. I often meet clients experiencing depression, anxiety, and academic decline — who may feel they are too far gone, and that there is just too much loss to move forward.
Facing problems alone can add additional burden, but within the safety of the therapeutic relationship, we can start to ask questions, gain clarity, and reflect on how we have arrived at that moment and cope differently. I specialize in treating teens and young adults whose outsider status can feel like a burden, but together we can find the strength and reflection in individual experience — discovering new perspectives along the way.
In additional to the joy, humor and happiness that can be found raising children, it is also extremely challenging especially when your child is facing social, emotional or academic challenges. The parent-child and family dynamics can become strained. Beliefs you carry from your childhood often influence how you respond to your child and your partner as you attempt to guide your child through rough waters.
I have worked with teen girls for 20 years in hospitals, residential treatment centers, schools, and outpatient settings to reduce depression, anxiety and unsafe behaviors. In therapy I can support an informed transition of saying goodbye to childhood, finding a peer group, understanding and managing emotions, and coping with authority without sacrificing personal voice and freedom. Additionally, I have also supported the families through couples and family therapy. With psychoeducation, coaching, psychodynamic, and cognitive behavioral interventions, parents learn to recognize and separate their fears from their responses, set boundaries, increase consistent follow through, and celebrate the small wins to add to the health and safety of the household and the relationships that live inside it.
