Social Workers - Austin, TX

"Kris has changed my life for the better. She has my highest recommendation. If you are looking for someone kind, non-judgmental, and professionally excellent, you've found her. "

"I highly recommend Sarah. She is professional, easy to talk to, and full of wonderful insight."

"This office was very caring and compassionate while attending. So grateful I found such a safe space."

"Not empathetic or pleasant at all. Unhappy, unsmiling, unwelcoming and unopen. Wasted my time and money because she isn't thorough in consultations. Acted like the money I spent to talk to her wasn't important. Just overall nasty and super unprofessional "

"I was in one of Heather's therapeutic groups, and that (mostly) went well. The group disbanded when some members left, and I asked Heather about individual therapy. We had a session to discuss it, and it was by far the worst therapy session I have ever had: the only one that left me feeling damaged, and the only one for which I am openly critical of the therapist. (I am in my fifties and have had several therapists since my twenties. Except for Heather, my experiences have ranged from so-so to great.) Almost from the beginning of the session, Heather accused and attacked me. She said that I wasn't showing up and that I expected her to drag things out of me. She blamed my reactions on the meds I was taking at the time (which sometimes made me sleepy, but nothing more than that). She said I was argumentative. She did not back up any of these accusations, but rather stated them baldly as if that were enough. When I responded to her accusations, all of which I thought were grossly unfair, she ignored me. And I mean ignored, as if I hadn't said anything at all. She simply continued to accuse. Her claim that I was argumentative was especially grating in that it was hypocritical. In calling me argumentative, what I heard was a claim that I was arguing with her rather than responding substantively. But in making that accusation, she was refusing to respond substantively to me, instead launching a sweeping criticism in order to avoid it. Furthermore, when I communicated with her after the session and expressed the above thoughts, her response was that she was "considering" my comments and "taking them to heart." This was several days after I had told her what bothered me about the session, and even longer after the session itself--more than enough time for her to draw conclusions. I read her response as an attempt to allow me to feel better about the session without taking any responsibility for her role in it, and I found that appalling. When I criticized her response, she again ignored me. The first thing I expect from a therapist is to hear me. Not responding directly to what I say during a session is inexcusable. I think it is also reasonable to expect the therapist to take charge of the session--not to drag anything out of the client, but to take an active role, rather than foisting all of the initiative upon the client. I further think it is reasonable to expect the therapist to act constructively if the session seems to be going off the rails, especially if the therapist is the one who sent it off the rails in the in the first place. She did none of these things, and she refused to take responsibility afterward. I am, as you can gather, angry. Bitter? Maybe. Vindictive? Probably. But any desire on my part to hurt Heather is entirely consistent with the purpose of reviews: to inform potential clients of my negative experience with her. Yes, I hope her business suffers, and that's what should happen. Potential clients should stay away from bad therapists, especially those not willing to admit their mistakes. If you are inclined to discount this review, fine; but at least you've been warned. If she did not want to work with me, for whatever reason, I would far rather that she had simply told me that, and not had an individual session with me at all, than treat me as she did. That session left me so wounded and averse to therapy that I have not had any therapy since then. Either this is simply how she is in individual sessions with some clients, or she had something against me in particular. Her response to my feelings after the session only serves to reinforce this point of view. Her satisfied clients can praise her all they like, but it is very easy to be judged on one's successes rather than one's failures. For me, she failed spectacularly."