We all have times in our lives when we are at a crossroads with no idea which way to turn. It’s hard to feel anything other than motionless. These crossroads can take many different forms: perhaps you’ve experienced a change in your family or your romantic relationship, perhaps a recent loss has left you coping with grief, perhaps you’re feeling stuck in a career position which no longer satisfies you. The one thing all of these “issues” have in common is your feeling of helplessness. You want to have a better relationship, be a better parent, have a better career, learn new ways of coping with stress and problems, or be better able to adjust to changing life circumstances. Perhaps you want a combination of the above. It’s so painful to be unhappy with no idea how to change it. I believe that these crossroads and the events which may have led up to them, while difficult, are also an opportunity for change for the better. I believe that the change you want is attainable.
You are
Philosophy
About
My name is Lauren Urban, LCSW and Psychobabble Brooklyn is my private practice in Ridgewood, Queens. I graduated with honors from Hunter College School of Social Work in 2006, and have worked as a therapist in a variety of settings throughout New York City since then. I have been in private practice for some years now, and feel fortunate to be working with a varied range of clients in such a vibrant community. I love that as a therapist, I am able to combine many of my strengths and passions into a practice that I love. In my practice, I employ creativity, HUMOR, feminist and anti-racist teachings, movement, arts, esoteric tools for divination and insight, analysis and intuition, warmth and connection, and encouragement of community to facilitate and support the process of making lasting change.
My practice is an anti-oppressive, identity-affirming space. I am aware of the systems we exist within that oppress some and elevate others, and I am aware of my place and my privilege within those systems as a cis-/hetero white woman. I believe it is incumbent upon me to engage in liberatory imagination and strive to be in right relationship with the communities with which I intersect and interact on a daily basis. I continue to attend training and seek learning and mentorship in order to dismantle these systems within myself and be an anti-racist, anti-oppressive practitioner. I specialize in working with the LGBTQIA+ community and with clients in recovery or considering recovery for drug and alcohol use. I work with adults with depression, anxiety, ADHD, challenges with emotional regulation and those experiencing difficult adjustments to changing life situations. My personal goals are to help my patients increase their overall feelings of agency and competency, to teach my patients to better manage resultant stress and to help my patients to develop or increase effective coping skills to navigate and survive the oppressive systems we live within.
My practice is an eclectic mix of insight-oriented talk therapies, Cognitive-Behavioral (CBT) interventions, Dialectical-Behavioral (DBT) interventions, and mindfulness-based interventions. I have attended the Trichotillomania Learning Center’s training on using a behavioral protocol to treat trichotillomania and body-focused repetitive behaviors. I continue to seek out and attend training and learning opportunities based on my interests (Jungian dream analysis and archetypes) and based on the needs of the patients who come into my practice (interventions for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, somatic interventions for working with intergenerational trauma, Gestalt interventions for working with Asian clients).
When I am not working at my private practice or co-managing Get Right Wellness, the wellness space I co-founded in Ridgewood, you can find me puttering around with my overabundance of plants, pulling tarot cards or playing with my crystals, at the beach or on a hike somewhere, going on long walks around the neighborhood taking photos, goofing around with my kiddo, cooking something delicious or making something random with my hoard of arts and crafts supplies.
If you’re ready to get started on your therapy journey and I sound like a good fit for you, feel free to reach out at lauren@psychobabble-brooklyn.com to request a consultation call with me!
Services
Together, we’ll examine what current stressors and behaviors are contributing to depression, anxiety or a state of stagnation. We will explore your family of origin and look at past and current patterns, such as self-esteem issues, substance use, body image issues, relationship issues, anger issues and more. We’ll identify manageable goals to help you achieve the changes you want, and we’ll work toward those goals using insight-oriented talk therapy and techniques from CBT and mindfulness practices.This means that when you’re in session with me, it will feel like we’re having a conversation. You will talk to me about your week, things that have come up since our last session, difficulties you’ve had with friends, families, partners or coworkers. I am active in my sessions and will react by empathizing or intervening when I see an opportunity to do so. I use humor often in my work. I will offer you advice for changing your current perspective and techniques for coping with specific things such as fears, worries and unhelpful relationship patterns. As a team, you and I will work to help you achieve a sense of agency over your life and the confidence in yourself to navigate difficult situations more effectively on your own.
Are you interested in therapy but unable to make it to a traditional office space? Do work schedule, child-care needs or other life circumstances prohibit you from seeing a therapist in person? The constraints of your circumstances no longer needs to keep you from engaging in the self-care that you deserve. I provide video counseling sessions via a HIPPAA-compliant, secure platform which can be accessed from your home computer, tablet or smartphone.
Prepare yourselves for the road ahead by attending pre-marital counseling together! My pre-marital counseling sessions focus on the two of you taking the time to connect and set intentions for your marriage, establish mutual expectations of what your relationship will look like as well as what each of your roles will be within that relationship, and building skills that will allow you to stay connected. I have built mindfulness techniques, CBT techniques, exercises in communication techniques, and therapeutic homework into a curriculum that takes into account the skills necessary for a couple to have a healthy and long-lasting relationship. The goal is to look forward and help you each feel prepared as you take your next steps together. All couples are welcome.
I am happy to hold a brief complementary consultation via phone or video call so that you can get a feel for me and the way I work and ask any questions you might have. Between sessions, I am reachable via email, telephone and text message and will reply to you as soon as I possibly can if I am not immediately available. Please understand that on weekends and vacations I may not be as responsive as I am during the week.
FAQ
All sessions are 1 hour in duration
Individual Sessions cost $200
Online Video Counseling (Telemental Health) costs $200
Pre-Marital Counseling costs $250
I am happy to hold a brief complementary consultation via phone or video call so that you can get a feel for me and the way I work and ask any questions you might have. Between sessions, I am reachable via email, telephone and text message and will reply to you as soon as I possibly can if I am not immediately available. Please understand that on weekends and vacations I may not be as responsive as I am during the week.
I accept out-of-pocket/private pay clients. Please let me know if you are eligible for out-of-network reimbursement by an insurance provider and I will gladly provide you with an invoice on a monthly basis which you can submit. I’m also happy to provide an invoice more frequently, if it’s helpful.
I can accept a limited number of Oscar, United Healthcare and Oxford clients through the Headway platform. If you have those insurance plans, please use this link to request a session with me. I’m happy to do a phone consultation in advance, which you can request via this website.
I have a limited number of sliding scale slots for clients who might need them. Please feel free to ask. I also offer a discount on bundled sessions. If you purchase 5 sessions using cash/check, you will get a $25 discount per session.
I require 24 hours’ notice of a cancellation. Because I understand that emergencies occur, I will make every effort to reschedule the cancelled session for a different day that week. If we can’t reschedule within the same week, I will have to charge for the session. In the event of a no-show, I will have to charge for the session.
Upon scheduling an appointment with me, you’ll receive an emailed link to a new patient portal. There you’ll find all of the new patient documentation that I ask you to fill out prior to our first session, as well as any billing documentation that I send you, such as invoices and monthly super bills.
I require payment at the time of service. I can take the following forms of payment: cash, check, any credit card, PayPal (info@psychobabble-brooklyn.com), Chase QuickPay (laurenurban57@gmail.com) & Venmo (@Lauren-Urban)
Contact Me
1025 Seneca Avenue
Ridgewood, NY 11385
Phone: +1 646-504-2687
E-mail: psychobabblebrooklyn@gmail.com