Senior Psychotherapist, Quality Assurance Coordinator

Em Riveles, LCSW

Em (she/her) is a born and raised New Yorker and loves to call the borough of Queens her home. She holds a BA from CUNY Queens College and earned her MSW from the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College with a focus in health and mental health. Em has received training in Adult Care Coordination, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, and trauma-informed care.

Em has worked clinically with LGB and TGNCI community members, adults with chronic mental health and medical conditions, and older adults living with HIV/AIDS in a variety of NYC non-profit organizations. Em has had several years of experience in group development and facilitation, some of which include a focus on LGBTQ+ empowerment, management of chronic mental health and medical conditions, relationship dynamics, and substance use/harm reduction. Em feels strongly that group therapy is an ideal way to provide a safe space for community-building and healing around shared topics while allowing clients to develop a deeper understanding of themselves and the world around them.

Em utilizes a strengths-based and trauma-informed approach in her work to draw on a client’s inner resiliency. In her work with clients, Em combines interventions from a variety of modalities including narrative therapy, psychodynamic theory, motivational counseling, and CBT. Em’s passion in her work is to empower clients to identify and pursue sources of change within their self-image, thoughts, behaviors, and relationships. In addition, Em draws heavily on the person-in-enviornment perspective, considering the role that one’s environment, the systems around them, and their personal (as well as familial history) plays in their current well-being. Em incorporates anti-oppression and intersectionality theories into her work with clients and strives to hold a safe and supportive space for people of all gender, ethnic, racial, and religious identities.

Em identifies as a member of the LGBTQ+ community and feels it is her responsibility as a white, queer individual to give back to LGBTQ+ people of color who have paved the way for rights that we have today. Em has done research while in graduate school on health/mental health disparities among LGB and TGNCI people of color, as well as lack of culturally sensitive care, and hopes to one day pursue higher education to introduce policies to address these disparities.

When she is off the clock, Em loves tending to her indoor garden, playing video games, and going for hikes. She loves to cook and try the many different cuisines offered by the World’s Burrough in Queens.

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Locations

159 20th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11232 | 14 Wall Street,
New York, NY 10005

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