L.M.H.C, Ed.M
Decrease
• Emptiness, loneliness, negative judgments towards self or others.
• Extreme emotions and urgent, short-term coping behaviors.
• Overwhelm, burnout, avoidance, and difficulty making important decisions.
Increase
• More time and attention spent on what really matters to you.
• Joy, hope and presence day to day.
• Ease, acceptance and relief about painful situations in the past or present.
• A sense of connection and reciprocity in your relationships.
• Clarity and confidence in your decision making.
• LGBTQIA+ affirming care for all ages
• PTSD
• Complex PTSD / Borderline Personality Disorder
• Sexual Abuse
• Suicidal Ideation, Self-Harm Behaviors
• Addiction
• Disordered Eating
• Intergenerational Trauma
• Rigid, Black and White Thinking Patterns
• Shame, Identity-based Stigma
• Depression
• Social Anxiety
• Life Transitions
. Gender affirming medical, social and legal transition
Ryan is currently accepting new clients virtually and in-person in Brooklyn, NY and NJ.
Schedule a Consultation
For those looking for more structure in session, I'm trained in the following methods.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
Treatments for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: Cognitive Processing Therapy, Written Exposure, DBT Prolonged Exposure
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Mindfulness Self-Compassion
Relationships can act as environments where we practice new ways of being, and witness each other grow in these efforts. For that reason, relationships can also inspire moments of immense vulnerability and conflict.
How does it work?
Starting in the first session, I will help you:
• Feel less hostility, criticism, and hopelessness
• Have more moments of connection and joy
• Hear each other clearly and communicate non-judgmentally
• Feel more compassion for yourself and your partner
• Develop short and long-term goals for your relationship
• Create collaborative problem-solving techniques for deeply rooted conflicts and triggers
Between sessions, I give practice assignments to help you use the skills you gained in therapy in your home environment.
Who is it for?
• Romantic couples (monogamous, poly, asexual, SW +)
• Friends, roommates, family members + who hope to reduce miscommunication and increase connection
• Relationships among people with differing power dynamics (i.e., interracial, inter-class +)
“The longer I live, the more deeply I learn that love--whether we call it friendship or family or romance--is the work of mirroring each other's light. Gentle work. Steadfast work. Life-saving work in those moments when shame and sorrow occlude our own light from view, but there is still a clear-eyed loving person to beam it back. In our best moments, we are that person for another.”
– James Baldwin, Nothing Personal
Each group session is structured like a class, where members will learn and practice coping techniques for any situation.
We will focus on:
• Mindfulness: Skills to increase joy and decrease shame and self-judgement.
• Distress Tolerance: Skills to help you pause so you can be less reactive, have more choice, and rely less on impulsive, harmful, automatic behaviors. Interpersonal
• Effectiveness: Communication skills to help you improve relationships, ask for what you need, say no to what you don’t want, and feel less alone.
• Finding the “Middle Path”- Skills to increase dialectical, “both/and” thinking and decrease the kind of extreme, all-or-nothing thinking that makes us feel hopeless.
New members are admitted during designated entry points about once a month. If you are interested in joining, click here.
Before I became a therapist, I worked on farms and in the service industry on the east coast and in Oakland, CA. I love to cook and am beginning to learn how to bake cakes. Friends often describe me as a golden retriever because I’m happiest when I’m outside and running after a ball.
Psychological Counseling EdM, Advanced Certificate in Sexuality, Women and Gender Psychology - Teachers College, Columbia University (2021)
Bachelor of Arts - Colorado College (2016)
1. Bochicchio, L., Herman, R., Tuda, D., & Scheer, J. R. A standard of how we want to see people be treated: Developing LGBTQ+ community guidelines. International Journal of LGBTQ+ YouthStudies (2025). https://doi.org/10.1080/29968992.2025.24783772.2.
2. Herman, R., Cavic, E., Puckett, J.A. et al. Balancing community and research needs in gender measurement decisions. Sex Res Soc Policy (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-024-00994-5.3.3.
3. Galiette, A. J., Herman, R., Reeder, K., Scheer, J. R., Stefancic, A., & Bochicchio, L. (2024).“Being here, you could actually be yourself”: Trans and gender expansive youth’s experiences of affirmation within LGBTQ+ community-based organizations. Psychological Services. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/ser0000906.
