Erica Paragallo (she/they)

LMSW
Accepting Clients

I work with people navigating trauma, burnout, identity and neurodivergence who want to feel more like themselves again.

Licensed Master of Social Work in New York
Supervised by Hena Hoda, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, License #088483 (NY)

Services
  • Individual

About My Clients

You may have spent years masking, overthinking and adapting to what other people needed from you. Perhaps a late ADHD or autism diagnosis has left you wondering which parts are really you and which helped you feel safe. I work with people navigating complex trauma, burnout, identity and difficult family patterns, including queer and neurodivergent clients. We can make sense of what shaped you without losing sight of who you are now. To work with me, book a first session through my website.

My Background and Approach

Therapy isn’t one-size-fits-all, especially when the usual advice has never worked for the way your mind naturally works. We’ll build an approach around your strengths, values, interests and goals rather than asking you to fit yourself into another system. My style is thoughtful, creative and practical. I draw from EMDR, trauma-informed CBT, DBT, narrative therapy, parts work, somatic mindfulness and art therapy. We might explore how the past is showing up now, pay attention to what happens in your body or find practical ways to work with executive functioning and strong emotions. I’ll help you connect the dots, offer honest feedback and gently push you when it feels useful. Some sessions may be structured, while others may need room to follow what comes up. We’ll adapt the work as we learn what helps you.

My Personal Beliefs and Interests

This work is personal to me. I’m queer, genderfluid, late-diagnosed neurodivergent and AuDHD, with my own experience of mental health recovery, caregiving and invisible disability. My relationship with identity, belonging and intergenerational patterns has shaped the way I see therapy. I know that masking and adapting can keep you safe, help you succeed and make other people more comfortable. I also know how easy it is to lose sight of yourself in the process. I don’t see therapy as a way to make you function more like everyone else. It can be somewhere you work out what actually fits you and begin welcoming back the parts of yourself you learned to hide.

Techniques I Use

Specialties
Art Therapy Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
Other Techniques
  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
  • Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
  • Expressive Art Therapy
  • Family Systems
  • Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
  • Motivational Interviewing
  • Psychoanalytic

Issues I Treat

Specialties
Anxiety Personality Disorders Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Other Issues
  • ADHD Therapists
  • Burnout
  • Depression
  • Family Conflict
  • LGBTQ-Friendly Therapists
Insurance Plans Accepted
  • Aetna
  • Cigna
  • Optum
  • Oxford Health Plan
  • All Savers
  • Wellfleet
  • United Healthcare UMR
  • UnitedHealthcare
  • Surest
I offer online counseling in the following states:

At A Glance

  • Experience: 7 years of practice
  • Languages: English
  • Rate: $175/session

Reach out to Erica