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Meet Our Skilled Psychotherapists and Staff
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Email: hfradkin@rrohio.com
From
the beginning, Affirmations has stood as a bold symbol. When he founded
the practice in 1982, Howard was the only openly gay male psychologist
in Columbus. Marshalling training, talent, and commitment, he has been
breaking new ground ever since.
When clients and peers refer to Howard
as "highly credentialed," it is an understatement. He has been listed three
times in Who's Who of Emerging Leaders in America, and has also been honored
with listings in Who's Who Among Young American Professionals and Who's
Who in Medicine and Healthcare.
With a doctorate in Counseling Psychology
from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a foundation, he
has:
Earned certifications in the treatment
of alcohol and other psychoactive substance use disorders, and also managed
mental health care.
Pursued more than 500 hours of continuing
education courses, including "Psychology, HIV and Chemical Dependency,"
"Counseling the Sexual Addict Intensive Training" and "Relapse Prevention
Therapy."
Served his community as director and
trainer for the Columbus AIDS Task Force, and as co-founder and facilitator
of the first 15 Ohio AIDS Coalition "Healing Weekends. "
One of Howard's major specialties is working with male survivors of sexual
abuse and assault. Most recently in the past few years, Howard has served as
the Chairperson of the MaleSurvivor Weekends of Recovery committee, which
sponsors several intensive therapeutic weekends for male survivors all
across the country. Visit www.malesurvivor.org to learn more. In this
role, Howard is responsible for supervising the 12 clinicians who facilitate
these weekends. Howard was also instrumental in the formation of the
National Organization Against Male Sexual Victimization in 1994, which is
now known as MaleSurvivor. Howard served on the board for 6 years including
a year as President. Howard currently serves on the Advisory Board of
MaleSurvivor.
Howard doesn't limit his passions
to work. He is also a connoisseur of cooking, glass sculpture, dancing,
jogging, sailing, and singing. |
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Email: dlaufersweiler@rrohio.com
Don
Laufersweiler also takes a vibrant approach to life and healing. He is
a Licensed Independent Chemical Dependency Counselor and has been honored with the
Ohio AIDS Coalition Spirit of Healing Award. (He is also the creative force
behind the beautiful garden you will notice along the office path.)
With a Master's in Guidance and Counseling
from Niagra University, Don has contributed to a range of chemical dependency,
emergency crisis intervention, and counseling services, and enjoys a national
reputation for his powerful teaching ability.
His proudest achievement has been
serving as chairperson for the Ohio AIDS Coalition for three years.
Don was also a founder of the Gay
People's Alliance at Ohio University, and co-founder of the Washington
County AIDS Task Force.
In addition, he was selected by his
peers to serve for six years on the Board of Trustees for the Ohio Credentialing
Board for Chemical Dependency Professionals. His research includes contributions
to "Development of Social Interaction in Passive Mentally Retarded Adults
in a Natural Setting" and publication of "Early Recovery for the Gay and
Lesbian Recovering Addict."
Fluent in American Sign Language,
Don is uniquely able to counsel deaf and hard-of-hearing patients with
impressive results. He is also a certified clinical hypnotherapist. |
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Email: crussell12@aol.com
Craig
helps persons struggling with depression and anxiety, stress, relationships,
abuse and trauma, personality disorders, chemical dependency, low self-esteem,
gay and lesbian issues, and AIDS. He is also highly successful in counseling
couples and families coping with anger, domestic violence, communication
breakdowns, intimacy problems and codependency.
Craig is skilled in many therapeutic
techniques including hypnosis and EMDR. Craig is gifted in his ability
to work well with both children and adults. |
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Email: affirmations@rrohio.com
Jim
not only practices psychotherapy, but also trains and supervises graduate
students as part of his job as a Psychologist at The Ohio State University's
Counseling and Consultation Service. He uses his knowledge and skills to
facilitate the healing of individuals and couples dealing with a wide range
of concerns: sexual orientation, AIDS, depression, anxiety; abuse,
and intimacy.
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Email: affirmations@rrohio.com
Affirmations is thrilled to welcome Amy Pfeiffer, M.A., LPC as a new part-time psychotherapist. Amy, a licensed professional counselor, has worked in social service and has experience with adolescents and adults.
Amy has worked with survivors of sexual assault and trauma, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender young adults, domestic abuse victims, drug dependent clients, and clients with disordered eating. She has worked within numerous menta health crisis situations.
Currently Amy is also a full-time therapist for The Ohio State University's student population. Amy received her Master's in Clinical Counseling at The Ohio State University and her Bachelor's from Purdue University in Lafayette, Indiana.
She has received numerous trainings on different psychotherapeutic approaches, populations, and techniques, as well as invitations to guest lecture at Purdue University and sit on several professional panels. She is a member of her nations and state professional organizations, the American Counseling Association and the Ohio Counseling Association. In addition to individual work, Amy enjoys working with couples and co-leading a group for gay males at OSU. |
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Email: affirmations@rrohio.com
Angie, a licensed professional counselor, has been working in social services for over ten years. She has a broad range of experience including work with families, adults experiencing many different life transitions, and adjudicated youth. She has extensive experience working with LGBT, Queer and Questioning young people. Angie currently works as a counselor with the Weekend Intervention Program through the Wright State University School of Medicine and is the Executive Director of Kaleidoscope Youth Center.
Angie's particular areas of interest lie in working with those who are dealing with difficulties in relationships, low self-esteem, depression, abusive/traumatic experiences, coming out issues, identity formation, addictions, communication skills and gender identity conflict. Additionally, Angie enjoys helping parents and adolescents, both individually and as a family, to improve communication and build better relationships; to seek mutual understanding on issues involving the safety, privacy, and well-being of family members; helping both parents and adolescents feel respected, trusted, and trusting in each other.
Angie can accept some insurance plans and is also willing to see clients who can pay out of pocket for services. She will be supervised by Don Laufersweiler, L.P.C.C.
Angie's hours are M, W, and F from 10-12 noon, and W from 4-9 pm.
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Email: affirmations@rrohio.com
Sapna Shetty, M.A. is an Independent Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Sapna grew up in Calgary, Canada, where she received her Bachelors of Psychology at the University of Calgary. She later moved to Seattle and received her Masters in Clinical Psychology at Antioch University, Seattle. She is a member of her national and state professional organizations, The American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists as well as the Ohio Association of Marriage and Family Therapists.
Sapna currently works at Nationwide Children's Hospital as a Psychometrician at their Autism Clinic, and joined Affirmations in the fall of 2007.
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Email: affirmations@rrohio.com
Dwight earned his master's degree in counseling from the University of Tennessee in May of 2001 and his Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee in August of 2008. In the meantime, he worked in a variety of settings and with a variety of populations. Specifically, he has worked in community mental health centers, university counseling centers, and with a crisis organization for children and adolescents. Dwight completed his pre-doctoral internship at The Ohio State University's Counseling and Consultation Service.
Healing, Growth, and Empowerment ...
Dwight views himself as a healer and views individual psychotherapy as a process of healing. He attempts to help clients find their psychological wounds and core conflicts and then attempts to nurture these wounds and internal struggles. His therapeutic style centers upon displaying care, warmth, and respect for his clients. Dwight views the therapeutic journey as a process. He values an approach to life that focuses on the process of living, which includes the process of making decisions, the process of problem-solving, the process of trying to reach goals, etc. Through the therapeutic process, he believes that individuals change the way they interact with others, the world, and/or themselves as they truly embrace the therapeutic journey. He also wants his clients to know how much he respects them and honors how, when, and why they allow him to enter into their psychological world. "I have a deep respect for clients and want them to feel my care and concern for them as well as my belief in their ability to change. In this light, I view my role as one where I help clients feel empowered to interact with others, the world, or themselves differently and to develop the confidence, resiliency, and belief to maintain this change."
Dwight has gained experience working with individuals across the life span (i.e., children, adolescents, adults, elders), couples and families, and diverse clients. He has been trained as a generalist and embraces the idea of being able to work effectively with most populations and most issues (e.g., depression, sexual trauma, loss, anxiety, substance use/abuse, body image/disordered eating, identity issues, etc.). He is also proud to be a Psychologist affiliated with Affirmations ... where diversity, social advocacy, and the belief in the human spirit are appreciated, valued, and nurtured.
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Email: affirmations@rrohio.com
Chad earned his master's degree in 2004 and his Ph.D. in counseling psychology in 2008.
Both degrees were completed here in Columbus at The Ohio State University.
Chad completed his predoctoral internship at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte
and a postdoctoral fellowship at Ohio University. He has worked in college mental health, an inpatient
setting, the VA, and with primary care physicians helping to coordinate medical and psychological care.
Chad has experience working with diverse clients and a variety of concerns. His individual clients have
included adolescents as well as older adults, and he has a strong background in group and couple's therapy.
Chad believes strongly in the importance of learning to understand and appreciate one's own emotional
experience. He views therapy as a potentially powerful tool for reaching this goal and a collaborative
endeavor where the worldview of his client is honored and respected. In addition to his work at
Affirmations, Chad also teaches at Columbus State Community College. Chad joined the practice in August
of 2009.
Chad's work at Affirmations is being supervised by Howard Fradkin, Ph.D.
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Email: affirmations@rrohio.com
Glenn received his Master's in Social Work from Hunter College of Social Work in 2006. In addition
to his part-time work at Affirmations as a social worker, he also serves as the Program and Services
Coordinator at Kaleidoscope Youth Center, an LGBT youth center in Columbus. Glenn's specialties include
working with GLBT and questioning adults and adolescents; substance use, HIV/AIDS, exposure to
violence and harrassment, isolation, self esteem, and vocational decision making.
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