Counseling

Meeting you where you are

JFCS’ Counseling program provides compassionate, person-centered, trauma-informed mental-health services to adults, children, teens, couples and families facing life’s challenges. Our priority is to provide support based on trust, empathy and understanding to ensure that our clients feel safe, empowered and able to make progress toward their goals.

Our Counseling team – with combined 50 years’ experience – and program:

• Include licensed and master’s level providers (MSWs and LCSWs)
• Provide culturally competent, confidential and effective services
• Offer our clients as many treatment options as possible
• Accept private pay, sliding scale, Medicare and secondary insurance, as well as commercial insurance according to plan provision
• Meet clients where they are

L to R: Missy Fry, Douglass Ruth, Laura Cohen

What does this phrase “meeting you where you are” really mean? 

• Our clinicians work with clients in the physical space that works best for them and also in their most comfortable emotional space. “It has to do with a person’s right to self-determination that we always honor,” says Missy Fry, LCSW, CAGCS, Aging & Adult Services Clinician.

• We see clients by appointment-only at our downtown offices and in our new space at the Eastside Jewish Commons (EJC); in their home when warranted; and online thanks to the advantages of telehealth.

Laura Cohen, LCSW, ACSW, child and family therapist, says, “The power of therapy is being present with that person and in that moment.”

JFCS offers counseling services that focus on wellness and the development of coping strategies via a strengths-based approach for a variety of mental health issues.

Our counseling services include:

• Psychotherapy for adults across the lifespan
• Specialized geriatric psychotherapy
• Counseling for children, teens and families
• Short-term solution-focused therapy
• Processing and support groups
• Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE)
• Staff training and development

For more information, click here to contact the Counseling department.

Navigating your Children’s Mental Health Challenges:

A Parent Support Group

Join us the first Monday of each month to connect with other parents experiencing similar challenges and to learn more about relevant topics relating to mental health in children and youth.

The first part of each evening will be facilitated by presenters from our Anxiety Series and will offer an informal opportunity to check -in, connect and share with other parents. The second part of each evening will be led by a guest speaker who will share their wisdom and expertise on topics that resonate with so many of us.

Our first session, “Navigating School Success,” will be held October 2, 2023, 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

Click here to learn more.

Partnerships power Counseling

“Partnerships are what make us a social-services organization,” says Douglass Ruth, LCSW, clinical director of Jewish Family & Child Service. 

He and JFCS Counseling program colleagues Laura Cohen, LCSW, ACSW, child and family therapist, and Missy Fry, LCSW, CAGCS, aging & adult services clinician, engage local and national partners to expand JFCS’ reach and strengthen community for clients seeking mental-health support.

Click here to learn more.

SPACE: Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions

Is your child or teen struggling with anxiety? Is it impacting how you and/or your family function(s)?

If so, consider contacting JFCS’ Child and Family Therapist Laura Cohen, a licensed clinical social worker. She is offering a new treatment option called SPACE (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) that provides parents with skills and tools to help their child cope with and overcome anxiety.

Click here to learn more.

Mental Health Spotlight

In addition to one-on-one psychotherapy, JFCS offers Mental Health Spotlight to shine a light on areas where all people – children through older adults, including self-identified disabled members of our community – struggle and can seek help. Mental Health Spotlight’s goal is community outreach and providing pertinent information about topics our clinicians are tuned in to through their client work.  

Mental Health Spotlight is not one-on-one therapy. It offers groups, workshops and presentations — spaces for anyone in the community to connect with others and share what’s on their mind.

Click here to learn more about this important program or check out our group sessions currently being offered below. 

Watch this short video above featuring JFCS’ clinicians discussing community need and their role in supporting clients’ mental health.

Learn more about our Counseling program:

The “C” in JFCS is now firmly in place

Learn more about JFCS’ new full-time child and family therapist

JFCS: the community’s go-to agency for mental health services

Learn more about our mental health services and PCTI approach to care

Click here for a list of Behavioral Health Community Resources