I have been in private practice in Westfield since 1995 with an emphasis on adolescents and adults in need of help coping with life's stressors. These stressors include, but are certainly not limited to depression and anxiety, developmental issues,school anxiety and school refusal, women's issues, parenting difficulties and social issues to name a few. Women in particular often cope with a great deal of stress related to work, family,loss and from time to time, serious illness. These strains can become overwhelming and coping may become difficult and sometimes impossible to do alone.

I am NOT ACCEPTING new clients at this time. It's a courageous step to seek help. A path to change your life for the better is here. I use both short term and longer term therapy to treat individual adults, children of all ages, couples and families. While I specialize in the treatment of anxiety disorders, depression and interpersonal difficulties.My expertise is in the integration of cognitive behavioral therapy and the insight oriented approach that I take with both adults and children.

Is the behavior of a loved one or friend keeping you awake at night? Do well meaning people tell you to "detach" but you don't know how? Many people find themselves in this situation-a family member or loved one is drinking or drugging too much, and you feel helpless to help them. This situation causes many people to feel lonely, depressed, anxious, and hopeless. Psychotherapy can help you get your emotional life back despite the behavior of the people you love.

"Where there is a will there is a way! I provide a warm, nurturing environment where individuals, children, families, and couples can come get support and feel empowered to make positive changes." I use a psychodynamic approach to assist individuals who are experiencing difficulties related to low self-esteem and post-partum depression and issues related to loss. I assist children and parents with behavioral and developmental delays and also provide parent training/support. I work with couples having relationship issues and work on effective communication strategies and process the underlying cause of the conflict.

In therapy, we learn to see ourselves more clearly through identifying our strengths and weaknesses with more openess, curiousity, and less judgement. It's through this compassionate and conscious way of relating to ourselves that we can begin to make wiser decisions for ourselves and our relationships. In my 33 years of practice, I have worked with individuals, couples, families and groups. After working in a hospital system for many years, I'm very comfortable working with people with chronic illness, depression and loss. I've also been dedicated to helping women around body image issues and transitions.

If you are on this site, you are most probably experiencing some difficulty in your life. For the past 25 years, I have been helping people deal with the challenging issues that life can present and assisting them in living fuller, less stressful lives. I have almost three decades of experience in treating alcohol and drug addiction, grief and loss issues, depression and anxiety. I have seen individuals, couples and families throughout the life cycle as they struggle with being human and attempt to break destructive patterns and live more freely and with more peace of mind.

Donna Galante provides a safe and confidential environment when working with individuals, couples and families in order to help cope with life's stressors, and create less anxiety and confusion. Her strategies are designed to help clients negotiate more effectively at home, school, and in the workplace.

I believe that psychotherapy and coaching are gifts you give yourself. For the past 20 years, I have helped many competent, well-educated men and women whose lives, while "good on paper," are unsatisfying. They feel empty despite successes and have difficulties maintaining healthy relationships with loved ones. My clients feel stuck in their lives and want to make productive changes. I help them examine the ways they repeat the patterns which only lead us to disappointment. I can help you identify these roadblocks to happiness and guide you to create the life you want and deserve.

We have many parts of ourselves-emotional, spiritual, physical, and cognitive. If any one part should fall out of balance, it negatively impacts our whole being. I offer a safe, nurturing, therapeutic environment where you can explore these parts of your self and work toward restoring a comfortable balance in your life. Empowering you to make thoughtful decisions in your own life is the achievable outcome.

Seeking help is a courageous act and I admire all of my clients for taking this step. I aim to provide a warm, supportive, and non-judgmental enviornment for you to explore your concerns and issues. My style is conversational and direct, and my clients say that I am easy to talk to. I believe that each client is unique and there is no one size fits all treatment plan when it comes to therapy. I utilize multiple therapeutic modalities including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and Solution-Focused Therapy, and I believe in utilizing mindfulness and acceptance techniques.

I AM UNABLE TO ACCEPT NEW CLIENTS AT THIS TIME: I am a licensed clinical social worker working in my 15th year with individuals, families, adolescents and children. My experience and training as a family systems therapist has afforded me the opportunity to engage clients from an empowerment and strength-focused model. During my diverse experience in the field I have successfully worked with individuals and families who have experienced a wide range of issues including those suffering from the traumatic effects of substance abuse, domestic violence, sexual abuse, issues of self-esteem and dealing with loss.

I provide compassionate support for individuals looking to make a positive change in their life. Through a positive therapeutic relationship I work with each client to address specific situations as well as behavioral patterns that may be holding them back from growth by developing a customized plan to achieve their personal goals. I find great joy and meaning in helping my clients gain insight and awareness. I also seek to access their innate strengths, resources, and to further develop their skills and confidence to create a more fulfilling and balanced life.

Have you lost the spark in your relationship? Do you long for the sexual intimacy and companionship you once enjoyed? Do you struggle to communicate over even the simplest matters? Has your bond together been assaulted by addiction, infidelity or an emotional affair, and you are seeking to heal? Or have the ordinary stressors of everyday life, work, home, kids and finances driven a wedge between you and your significant other? You are not alone . . .

Welcome! My belief in the healing potential of psychotherapy is grounded in the decades of research on attachment, trauma and the body, and relational neuroscience. Our early relationships and experiences, including trauma, form the lens through which we experience our day-to-day lives. By understanding distressing patterns in our here-and-now functioning as remnants of protective and adaptive functioning in early life, we can move towards change from a place of self-compassion and deep understanding.

We have all been impacted by the corona virus. Most of us have an increase in our anxiety and face difficult changes and life stressors. To help meet clinical needs, I am offering video and phone sessions and flexible payment and billing. Life can take unexpected bends and turns and sometimes we need someone to help us find our way. I provide a safe, caring, non-judgmental environment for you to share the stress and burdens weighing you down. If you are struggling please considering contacting me or another mental health professional to offer you assistance. You don't have to be alone and together we will get through this!

There are times in one's life when difficulties arise that need the help of a specially trained listener. I can help explore these challenges in a safe, authentic, nonjudgmental atmosphere. I have been a psychotherapist for over twenty years and have over nine years of advanced training. I work with teenagers (14 and up) and adults suffering from a variety of personal, emotional as well as social problems. If needed, I work in collaboration with psychopharmacology.

Truth is essential to our mental integrity. Full access to the "truths" embedded in our personal stories and the emotions, beliefs and healthy impulses they engender make us "whole". They form the basis of our identity, resilience, self-worth; our very well being. The problem: our "truths" sometimes appear overwhelmingly painful, disheartening and/or terrifying, particularly if safe/trustworthy people haven't been available to help. In order to cope, real feelings are buried, "looking good" facades created and the past (consciously) ignored. Unfortunately, dissociating these truths creates a life that lacks choice and is instead stubbornly ruled by the past.