We don’t change the way you think, we change the way you feel

At Downtown Somatic Therapy, we recognize the body’s wisdom and track sensations that help you access deeper feelings, ultimately promoting change and transformation.

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By focusing on emotions, we help you move beyond thinking about your issues, and actually change the way you feel. This style of therapy is sometimes referred to as experiential therapy.

Our therapists are trained in a variety of approaches like: AEDP, Somatic Experiencing, Gestalt, Internal Family Systems and EFT.

Read more on the blog

 
 
 
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Meet our therapists

 
 
 
 

Stefan Allen-Hickey, LCSW

$230 / individual session
$280 / couples session

I became a therapist because I was curious about the unfulfilled hopes people have for their lives, and spent years studying various approaches dedicated to helping adults unlearn their negative ideas that govern their thoughts and impede personal growth.

I practice a style of therapy that emphasizes healing and empowerment and I have found that my strength lies in working with people to explore the fears that cause them to stagnate in relationships. The work I do is trauma-informed and takes into account the paradoxical notion that while many traumas originate in hurtful contact with other people, it is also through connection with others that these same traumas can begin to heal.

 
 
 
 

Melanie Berkowitz, LCSW

$250 / individual session
$300 / couples session

I see therapy as being rooted in the wisdom that we cannot grow, or face our challenges and pain alone. For this reason, I spent three years studying Gestalt, an approach to therapy that focuses on transformation through relationships, the present moment, and creativity.

I primarily work with individuals and couples who struggle to know what they want or who yearn for a greater sense of ease from depression, anxiety, fatigue, or past traumas. I pay special attention to the body in sessions. I've come to trust that attending to breath, muscular holding, and movements can deepen a person's self-awareness and unlock their natural ability to heal.

 
 
 
 

Seraphina Mallon-Breiman, LMSW

$230 / individual session
$280 / couples session

I love people and I know how important it is to feel seen and have support through dysfunction, transition and growth. My passion is looking for connections between the mind and body and holding space for what arises in the process.

You are the expert of your own experience and I am here to work with you, from this perspective, to help you find the connection, strength and support you are looking for in your life. With a background and training in movement, performance and alternative education, I use somatic, psychodynamic and trauma-informed modalities to move through personal exploration and healing with curiosity and ease.

 
 
 
 

Tina Tacorian, LCSW

$230 / individual session
$280 / couples session

When we heal ourselves, we also heal our communities. This is why I choose to work with individuals and couples who are motivated to create lasting and meaningful change in their lives. Conforming to identities and expectations that do not reflect who we truly are can be painful.

We can become disconnected and lose touch with our authentic voice. I work in an outpatient psychiatry program helping patients with serious mental illness rebuild and re-envision their lives. No matter the setting, my focus is on emotional repair and strengthening your relationship with yourself and others.

 
 
 
 

Pia Wallgren, LCSW

$250 / individual session
$300 / couples session

I primarily work with individuals in midlife or in early adulthood. Having moved around and lived in many different countries from a young age, I have a unique perspective that resonates with clients who are first or second-generation immigrants or who define themselves as expats. I speak Swedish, English and French.

I am particularly compelled by what can happen when we slow down and really tune into ourselves. This can be remarkably hard! Sometimes this is because we feel that time sitting still instead of striving towards achievement is time wasted. And, sometimes it’s hard because we sense painful or frightening feelings will overwhelm us if we don’t stay busy. I ensure that I stay present and engaged as a therapist by taking time to rest and recharge. Sometimes that involves lying on the couch or meditating, and sometimes it involves attending training to deepen my therapeutic knowledge and practice.

 
 
 
 

Sarah Shuster, LMSW

$225 / individual session
$275 / couples session

I became a therapist because I believe that choosing to look at the unhealthy patterns in our relationships and within ourselves is an incredibly courageous act. Learning about the ways that trauma disconnects us from our bodies was life changing for me. That’s why I practice somatic therapy – to help people people learn to regulate their nervous systems and reconnect with the feelings we once pushed down because they weren’t safe to feel.

 
 
 
 

Anne Heller, MHC-LP

$230 / individual session

I have always been interested in how family of origin patterns repeat themselves and what people can do to rewrite their stories. My practice uses the framework of traditional psychodynamic psychotherapy but we will get results by focussing on your thoughts and feelings in the present, often using the wisdom of what is showing up in your body as a guide. In this way we will move beyond talk therapy into something that feels more active and engaged. In our sessions, we will slow down and track what is causing the symptoms that are troubling you. By getting under your thoughts and behaviors and processing the emotions below, we will get to the heart of what is causing you pain. The goal of our work is for you to resolve what brought you to therapy, create more meaning in your life, and forge deeper, more connected relationships.

 
 
 
 

Nithyaa Venkataramani, LMSW

$200 / individual session
$250 / couples session

My goal is to help you feel less alone so that you can experience feeling fully seen and heard. I will support you in cultivating skills and designing practical experiments that will reduce your suffering and build your confidence in your ability to thrive. My therapeutic style pulls from the somatic, the emotional and the cognitive to help your mind and body heal together. Together, we’ll uncover the roots of your familiar patterns and behaviors that have likely helped you survive some difficult situations – but are keeping you from living the life you deserve.

 
 
 
 

Gina Campanella, LMSW

$230 / individual session
$280 / couples session

I believe relationships are the foundation of well-being. My background in the arts has taught me to pay attention to nuance and to listen with all of my senses. Our defenses, both conscious and unconscious, may prevent us from noticing how things are affecting us in our bodies or lead to depression and anxiety. My approach is to stay “in the moment” and notice what shows up. I find when we embrace the power of experiencing emotions by slowing down, we are able to process feelings that seem too difficult to confront, especially alone.

Everyone, at times, struggles to find meaning in their lives. Therapy is a way to reconnect, recharge, and feel less alone.

 
 
 
 

Stephanie Alirkan, MHC-LP

$230 / individual session
$250 / couples session

I’ve always loved learning about people, how our survival mechanisms evolved, how culture impacts society, and vice versa. Last not least, I’m most enamored by our depth of feelings, and our profound capacity for beauty, connection, and love. I’m passionate about helping clients work through trauma, stressful life events, and exploring stuckness in relational patterns.

The north star of my work is the belief that in order to heal tension, stress, painful sensations and feelings, we first need to feel resourced and soothed in our nervous system. We’re familiar with the idea that trauma impacts our brains adversely, but growing in my understanding the physical impacts has been incredible for shaping my view of how to heal in a way that feels as if a heaviness has lifted, like a long sigh of relief – a true sensation of okay-ness. I see therapy as needing to incorporate the natural process of the mind, body, and the senses to truly move us forward in a meaningful, lasting way. It’s one thing to understand on a surface level, but reaching deeper, underlying parts of us is where real transformation can be felt.

 
 
 
 

Wes Curtis, LMSW

$230 / individual session
$280 / couples session

I’m fascinated by the unconscious patterns and mental roadblocks that can disrupt people’s lives. Therapy is the space where we can take an honest and compassionate look together at where these disruptions begin and then find new ways of connecting to ourselves and others. The challenging process of finding the truest version of ourselves is also incredibly rewarding, not just for my clients but also for myself as a witness to the process.

I use the mind-body connection as a compass to navigate this work. There is a wealth of guidance from the body and emotions that our society often overlooks. In my work we prioritize this innate guidance to enhance our connection to self and others. We integrate thoughts, behaviors, and the unconscious by using experiential awareness and by tracking the body and the nervous system. The result is a powerful and lasting transformation in ourselves and in our relationships.

 
 
 
 

David Charme, LMSW

$230 / individual session
$280 / couples session

I became a therapist because I’ve experienced and witnessed first-hand the insight, relief, and depth of emotion that can emerge when we tune into our whole selves. Somatic therapy has shown me that when we’re resourced and able to access those parts of ourselves that may have felt like too much, and connect with emotions that we may have pushed down just to get by, transformation can occur. One that impacts not just the mind, but is also felt in the body. That embodied awareness, the felt sense of what’s true for us, can be life-changing.

My guiding light as a therapist is to take a look at the obstacles and difficulties in your life by engaging all of you – mind, body, and emotions. I listen with warmth and gentle curiosity, bring attention to subtle body sensations, and slow down to make space for whatever emerges in the here and now. Sometimes we may need to pull up some weeds to give way to the rich emotional terrain that lies underneath. But I believe that with gentleness and someone we trust by our side, we can be equipped and regulated to encounter what’s there – at a pace that feels right.

 
 
 
 
 

Tamiko Nishita-Hawkinson, LMSW

$200 / individual session
$250 / couples session

I delight in working with people. Being a part of another person’s healing journey feels very special to me. It is a great honor to hear people’s stories, bear witness to their emotions, and get to know their truest selves.

Personal and professional experiences with trauma have taught me to pay close attention to how our emotions are embodied. I believe that change and transformation arise from reconnecting with the inner wisdom of the felt experience in the here and now.

 
 
 
 
 

Katy Haney, LMSW

$250 / individual session
$300 / couples session

I work with individuals and couples who are navigating the complexities of being human and in relationship with others. I practice in a psychodynamic and psychoanalytically informed way with a belief that it is through the therapy relationship we can understand ourselves more fully and heal.

In my work with patients, I aim to help you become more conscious of unconscious patterns that keep you disconnected from yourself and others, and help you develop a deeper connection to your body and emotions. Through a deeper understanding of yourself, you can transform emotional suffering and live more authentically. I believe therapy is relational and invite patients to talk about the ordinary moments to the deeply personal ones without censoring their thoughts, wishes, fantasies, and fears.

 
 
 
 
 

Ivy Chim, LMSW

$205 / individual session
$255 / couples session

I believe connection heals. We all experience moments of disconnection, aloneness, grief, pain and suffering. We all long for relationships that feel so safe that allow us to just be, with all parts of ourselves, seen, heard, accepted, and loved. A nurturing relationship provides a safe space for us to be present with our feelings and all parts of us to emerge.

When our pain is held and witnessed, it starts to transform and heal. I’m here to walk alongside you. Together, we can help you slow down and learn to trust yourself. I’m here to listen with curiosity and compassion, to support you to do deep healing work and transformation. I’m here to guide you and your partner to transform frustration to growth, conflicts to connection.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Avi Klein, Clinical Director

 

$300 / individual session
$350 / couples session

My strength and passion lies in working with adults and with couples who are ready to do transformative work. I have developed an expertise in working with men and my writing and interviews on my work have appeared in the NY Times and other outlets.

More broadly, I am drawn towards working with anyone who is seeking to heal from past traumas – big and small, recent and old. Helping someone regain their vitality and joy in life is one of the most rewarding and powerful experiences I can imagine – it is a privilege to participate in it. I have found, both in my own life and as a therapist, that working with embodied emotions yields powerful and lasting change, which is why my practice is dedicated to working with the body.

 
 
 
 
 

Published works

 
 
 
 

How I finally got men to talk about their feelings in therapy

The therapeutic solution, I realized, wasn’t something I’d learned in my training. Read on Medium

 

Your face mask is actually a sign of strength

A psychotherapist explains what men really project when they wear them. Read on Men’s Health.

 

What men say about #MeToo in therapy

I am also heartened by the private work that men are doing in therapy. Read on The New York Times.

 

A psychotherapist’s plea to Louis C.K.

Please, tackle your failings with the same courage and honestly that defined your best comedy. Read on The New York Times.

 
 
 
 
 
 

You don’t have to do it alone.

Our therapists don’t sit-back and take notes while passively listening to you talk about your problems. We emotionally engage with you, and support you while you experience and resolve difficult feelings in a safe and welcoming environment.

 
 
 
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