DS 2555 olivia

Olivia Berkeley, LCSW

Clinician at Ethos Wellness River North

Every person has the potential to live with more freedom, joy, ease, and love, and therapy supports us to realize this potential. Many of my clients have experienced various forms of relational trauma — including wounding that has occurred in intimate relationships or during their childhood — and yearn to heal from these experiences and find healthier ways of dealing with stress, anxiety, addiction, interpersonal difficulties, depression, and other challenging emotions and behaviors. My goal is to help you live with more peace and acceptance, expand your level of effectiveness, energy, and confidence, increase your resilience in the face of difficulty, feel a greater sense of autonomy and satisfaction, and deepen your connection to yourself and others.

My approach to therapy is rooted in kindness, warmth, curiosity, humor, authenticity, and acceptance, and I offer a space where you can be more deeply and directly in touch with the core of who you truly are: your body, mind, heart, and spirit. I take a body and emotion focused, experiential, and relational approach to therapy that is informed by psychodynamic theory (an approach that explores the connection between your past experiences, often in childhood, and your current thoughts, feelings, and actions) and Jungian depth psychology (a field of study that explores how the conscious and unconscious parts of you interact and influence you in the present).

In combining science and theory with the wisdom of the body, we will work together to name and challenge your entrenched beliefs, identify and understand your defense mechanisms and triggers, feel into and through difficult emotions, and undo aloneness and shame that stem from past trauma and wounding.

I enjoy and have experience working with people on a wide range of issues, including anxiety, depression, addiction and other compulsive behaviors (think: all the things people adaptively do to stay away from scary, overwhelming, or unpleasant emotions), disordered eating and body image issues, perfectionism, relationship issues, academic and work stressors, life transitions, existential, religious, and spiritual questions, and issues related to over and underachieving. Some people come to me for support around specific stressors or issues, while others seek to reflect on the deeper meaning and purpose of life.

I have worked with adults, teens, and children in a variety of settings for the past seven years, including K-12 schools, a sexual and domestic violence resource center, and a residential drug and alcohol treatment center. I consider myself a life-long student and am actively engaged in ongoing learning related to trauma, spirituality, interpersonal neurobiology, attachment, mindfulness, and somatic (body-based) therapies.

For most of my adult life, I have been invested in my own personal growth and development. In fact, my own journey in life and therapy served as a major catalyst for me to pursue therapy as a profession. Being a therapist combines some of my greatest loves – psychology, the mystery that is being a human, and deeply connecting with others, to name a few. I find tremendous meaning in the growth and development aspects of my life and am profoundly grateful for the depth, grounding, and guidance it provides me personally and professionally.

Credentials

  • Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Texas and Illinois
  • Level 1 AEDP Practitioner
  • Trauma-Focused CBT certified

Education

  • Bachelor of Arts in English, The University of Texas at Austin
  • Master of Arts in Teaching, Relay Graduate School of Education
  • Master of Science in Social Work, The University of Texas at Austin