Carolyn Ann Licht

Carolyn Ann Licht

I am a NY State licensed Psychologist and EMDRIA Certified EMDR Therapist, with a Somatic Experience Practitioner (SEP) certificate from SE™ International. I have extensive experience working with demographically diverse populations with a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic issues. My specialties include working with individuals struggling with complex trauma, anxiety and mood disorders, addiction, and chronic medical and pain conditions (i.e., HIV/AIDS, HCV, fibromyalgia, etc.). I have extensive experience working with family of origin attachment issues and relational conflict, career and life transitions, creative blocks, loss and bereavement, identity confusion and low self-esteem, as well as work with identified populations (i.e., LGBTQ and performing artists).

My career began treating adults and children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS at Harlem Hospital. This experience was expanded to include transgender youth of color pursuing gender transition at the Health & Education Alternatives for Teens (HEAT) Program in Brooklyn. I quickly learned that a “one size fits all” model of care is insufficient. This was further proven with my subsequent work as a psychologist at Freedom Institute, an intensive outpatient substance abuse treatment program in NYC. While there I developed the curriculum for and ran the evening “DBT Skills in Action” therapy groups. I also provided individual therapy to adolescents and adults with substance use disorders.

Now working a full-time private practice on the Upper West Side of NYC, I tailor my treatment to the uniqueness of the individual. I am focused on clients’ presenting conditions, as well as being sensitive to issues of culture, ethnicity, sexual orientation/identity, disability, religion/spirituality, and socioeconomic status. I have dedicated myself to increasing my skill set to allow for more targeted and individualized care. I have completed intensive training in a variety of experiential modalities including Attachment-Focused EMDR with Laurel Parnell; FLASH Technique with Manfield & Engel; Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) with Behavioral Tech; Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT); Somatic Experiencing (SE) with SE™ International, multiple Mindfulness Based Interventions (MB-Relapse Prevention, MB-Cognitive Therapy, MB-Pain Management, and MB-Stress Reduction); Harm Reduction Therapy; and Family Systems Therapy. I am also an Advanced Psychodrama Student in the Hudson Valley Psychodrama Institute’s Core Training Program. Knowing how nature has always been my place of healing and grounding energetically, I also try to bring elements of the natural world into the therapeutic space, with my plant-filled décor, and thru guided imagery and mindful therapeutic nature walks in Central Park.

I believe that we all have an inherent capacity for growth and change. It is only our insecurities that prevent us from achieving our optimal potential. Within a collaborative therapeutic space, I strive to create a sanctuary of compassion and safety. This allows clients to begin their journey of self-discovery and emotional healing as they work to overcome personal and societal obstacles.

In my prior career as a professional ballet dancer, I came to understand the importance of creating balance by nurturing the “whole self.” Thus I utilize an integrative strength-based therapeutic approach that emphasizes the mind-body-spirit connection. This promotes healing at a neurobiological level by fostering and respecting a person’s own inner resources and wisdom. I encourage the development of skills “in action” designed to increase self-awareness and to improve one’s ability to tolerate, embrace, and respond to experiences as they are in any given moment, in a conscious manner rather than in an emotionally-driven reactive manner or on automatic pilot mode. My goal is to help each individual discover and create their own “life worth living.”

Specialties

• Addiction
• Adults
• Adults abused as children
• Chronic Pain/Fibromyalgia
• Complex PTSD
• Couples Counseling
• Developmental Trauma
• Grief and Loss
• LGBTQIA+
• Medical Procedure Trauma
• Birth Trauma
• Intergeneration Trauma
• Domestic Violence
• Sexual Abuse