“Heather is not an ‘ummmm hmmmmmm tell me more’ therapist. She is engaged, thoughtful, and passionate about helping people.   Heather has the capacity to create safety, while gently moving the process to allow for transformative changes. She loves what she does and is a master at it.”
Jayne Gumpel, L.C.S.W., P.C.
“It gives me great pleasure to recommend Heather as a fine therapist. We have been colleagues for many years, and she brings  extraordinary gifts to her work. Her intelligence, humor,  empathy,  and good common sense all serve her patients well. She is extremely conscientious and thoughtful, and it is a pleasure to sing her praises!”
Sheila Colon, L.C.S.W., BCD
“Heather Karaman has helped me, in times of crisis as well as more contemplative times, to truly understand who I am and to become the most authentic version of myself. She combines incredible warmth with whip smart brains, letting me grow at my own pace, while helping to identify the destructive patterns that were making my life difficult. I highly recommend her.”
K.B.

My approach

Many people believe that the goal of life is happiness, and that their happiness lies somewhere in the future. It will arrive after they achieve certain goals or amass amounts of money, fame, weight loss, children, homes, status, etc. The list is endless, and beside the point. When we think of happiness as something that comes from outside of us, we have lost the plot. Happiness is not a goal, but a fleeting state, and one that is available to all of us when we learn that it comes from within. Happiness is self acceptance. Happiness is being able to feel useful and effective, whether at work, at home, or with others in interpersonal relationships. Happiness is being with people you love and feeling loved for exactly who you are. Happiness is being at peace with not knowing the whole story of your life in advance.

But life can be hard and at times full of loss and suffering. And without the proper guidance, how we process this suffering can be very unhealthy, and lead to overwhelming emotions that we don’t understand or know how to manage. This can lead to dysfunctional coping mechanisms that get reinforced over time.

It’s no wonder change can be so hard.

When we work together at deepening our self awareness, we take the first steps towards cultivating a more mindful way of experiencing our world, dispense with feeling like a victim, and realize that we do have choices. We can then challenge our limiting thoughts, and self-sabotaging behaviors, and break free from distortions about ourselves and others. We learn to reframe our circumstances, have the courage to feel and move through our feelings, and come out the other side stronger, wiser, and more resilient.

 

“Heather Karaman is compassionate, incisive, and funny. She cares deeply about her patients, discerns the causes of their pain with astonishing speed and insight, and eases their burdens with her bullseye sense of humor, empathy, and commitment to resolving issues. For the person who takes therapy seriously, there is no one better than Heather.”
D.G., patient for five years.
“I watched a friend transform from someone I liked into  someone I really admired.  I asked what she was doing, she told me about her therapy with Heather. Within my first visit to Heather  I understood what she was talking about- Heather is smart, sharp, clear, direct, insightful and intensely dedicated to the kind of behavioral change that I was looking for.  Heather’s guidance was, and still is, the major course correction I needed and wanted, it’s made all the difference.”
R.P.
“Look no further if you want a relationship with a smart, compassionate, funny, and thoughtful therapist. Heather’s unique style and commitment, as well as her wry sense of humor makes it all that much easier to walk the path challenged by loss, pain and suffering. Heather is the consummate professional with tremendous skill and breadth of experience. I highly recommend her, and have many many times over the past 15 years.”
Jayne Gumpel, L.C.S.W., P.C.

My bio

My career has been driven by an enormous curiosity about human behavior, a profound interest in helping people, and a deep well of compassion and empathy.

Over the years, I have pursued three diverse Master’s degrees, all in mental health and psychology, and each providing a different perspective to understanding and treating the human psyche. An early career Master’s in Marriage, Family, and Child Counseling from Chicago School of Professional Psychology led me to a position at Project Prevent, a drug and alcohol prevention program targeted to middle schools in the Greater Los Angeles area. In 1989, I returned to New York to attend the New School for Social Research, where I earned a Master’s in Psychopathology, focused primarily on research pertaining to personality disorders and severe mental illness, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. In time I came to realize that research-focused work was missing the human component that I craved, so I obtained a Master’s in Social Work from Columbia University. With this diverse foundation, I opened my private practice in 1996.

My training is as eclectic as my therapeutic approach.

My passion for learning has not waned and continuing education is a critical aspect of my ongoing professional development. I use my trainings to explore new research, treatment methods, and developments in psychology and psychopharmacology. This work keeps my practice evolving as it enriches me and my growth as a helping professional. These benefits impact every client in my practice.

I am a resource, a container, a safety zone, a salve, a fellow soldier, a coach, a cheerleader, a teacher—all of the above or some, as needed. My passion is my inspiration and hopefully yours as well.

License~New York State

Education

Continuing Education/Training

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