ERIN L. NAU, PhD, LCSW
NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY-BASED FEMINIST SOCIAL WORK CLINICIAN AND RESEARCHER
NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY-BASED FEMINIST SOCIAL WORK CLINICIAN AND RESEARCHER
About ME
Feminist, anti-racist, LQBTIA+ allied social worker, PhD with more than 15 years of experience as a clinician.
InitiativeI am a licensed clinical social worker providing individual, couples, family, and group counseling. I specialize in relational therapy, individual counseling for adolescent girls and women who experience trauma, are dealing with feelings of negative self-worth and relationship development, grief counseling, and women's health. I have also been trained by the National Intituative for Trauma Education and Workforce Development.
I believe that you are the expert on your own life. We will work together to identify barriers and work together to achieve your goals.
I'm fervent about the social work field, educating students as a Lecturer Professor at the Monmouth University School of Social Work. I have worked with various populations, including clients with severe and persistent mental illnesses, families, and adolescents.
I provide clinical supervision to BSW and MSW students and licensed master social workers.
Empowering women and girls is my passion and has led to my research interests as well as counseling and engaging women and girls in discovery through research. My research explored adolescent girls’ understanding of self-worth. The research is rooted in feminist theory and informs my work with my clients.
I am the former co-chair of the Council on the Role and Status of Women in Social Work Education, a committee of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). I'm a board member for Martha's Kayak, a nonprofit that provides free kayaking experiences to people battling breast cancer. I'm also a member of New York Road Runners.$30 per group or $100 for the whole session, when paid in full.
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Counseling services
Now providing services in New York and New Jersey
Individual Counseling
$200 for an individual session
I have been providing professional counseling services for more than 10 years. I specialize in relational counseling, self-worth, grief, and women's health. I believe you are the expert on your own life. I am here to listen and help you navigate your concerns and issues.
Family and Couples Counseling
$250 for a couple or family session
I am trained in Structural Family Therapy with a specialization in families with teenagers. I work with families and couples to identify and work through communication barriers. I see myself as a megaphone to help everyone feel heard.
Group Counseling
$300 for a 4-week group session (each group is 60 minutes)
I facilitate ongoing groups for girls with a focus on self-worth, relationships, and confidence-building.
CLINCAL SUPERVISION
Providing clinical consultation for LMSWs as well as MSW and BSW students. I am licensed in NY and NJ. I am a certified clinical social work supervisor in NJ.
Rates
--Individual consultation: $125 per hour
--Agency supervision (agencies looking to work with a supervisor to help their LMSW clinicians get supervision for their LCSW hours): $125 per individual
Testimonials
I thoroughly benefited from Erin's supervision, in large part due to her intuitive wisdom and thoughtful and effective advice. Erin's superb supervision allowed me to grow professionally, both in terms of my direct clinical work as well as understanding my role, responsibilities, and ability to help others to make changes in their lives. Erin challenged me, had high expectations while also allowing me to find my own approach which resulted in achieving my own professional development goals. I wouldn't be the social worker I am without Erin's guidance.
—LMSW supervisee
I interned for Erin Nau from September of 2017 through August of 2018. During that time, she guided me in providing effective, culturally sensitive counseling services to individuals with breast cancer. Erin helped me identify and focus on each client's strengths and needs in order to provide person-centered treatment. What made supervision with Erin was so special was that she continuously checked in on my self-care routine to ensure that I was caring for myself throughout my internship. I am so grateful to have worked with her!
—MSW intern
FAQ
What is your cancellation policy?
Please provide 24 hours' notice if you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment. I understand that emergencies occur and will make my best effort to reschedule within the same week. If we are unable to reschedule, you will be billed for our session. No-show appointments will also be billed for a full session.
Do you offer discounts?
I have a few slots available for people seeking a sliding-scale fee. Please reach out to me below and we can discuss this option.
Do you offer in-person sessions?
I only offer services online.
Do you accept insurance?
I do accept a few insurances at this time. Please reach out for more information.
BLOG
I write essays on Medium.com.
This week, even more than other weeks recently, I have read articles and tweets about girls’ bodies being policed by their parents and their coaches. It started with a tweet about T.I., a famous rapper and actor, who shared on a podcast that he goes with his 18-year-old daughter to her yearly gyn appointment to ensure that she is still a virgin. Read the rest at Medium.
Self-care has been a hot topic recently, especially among social workers. I work on it for myself on a regular basis. I talk about it with my students, my colleagues, and the social workers I supervise. My definition of self-care is something you do deliberately to reduce stress, burnout, and vicarious trauma; literally, something you do to take care of yourself (physical, emotional, mental self). Read the rest at Medium.
This time of year, gratitude is everywhere. It’s in the grocery store reminding you to be grateful for your abundance and the amazing prices. It’s during the mediation of my yoga class, more than usual. It’s in emails from nonprofits telling me they are grateful for my donation. I even use it with my counseling clients asking them what gratitude looks like for them. Read the rest at Medium.
New years are always presented with such hope and possibility. Like a clean slate. We flip the calendar to a new page, a new book and suddenly we will eat better, communicate more clearly, spend less money, and exercise more. That is a lot of pressure for the change in one day. I have definitely gotten caught up in resolutions, in making dramatic changes. Most of these changes barely last into February. Read the rest at Medium.
I have mixed feelings writing a blog post during an unimaginable crisis. However, writing helps me process the feelings — fear, anxiety, sadness, and uncertainty — that creep up on me. And then I can help people cope with theirs. Read the rest at Medium.
When someone moves on to something new in their lives, good or bad, people call it the end of a chapter or the beginning of a new one. This feels like the wrong analogy to me. Read the rest at Medium
Hope Arrives at Noon
For four years, I have felt varying degrees of heartbreak and betrayal. It began with the deep pain that someone who brags about assaulting women with no consequences can then be elected president. . Read the rest at Medium
I have not walked outside without a key between my fingers for more than 20 years. Read the rest at Medium
Sports Help Girls Run and Hit and Swim Their Way to Feeling Good About Themselves
National Girls and Women in Sports Day is February 2, a day to celebrate women and girls’ participation in sports, and also to cement the rights girls have to play sports as stated by Title IX. Read the rest at Medium
“A dirty knife and a folding table”
Finding out that the Supreme Court intends to overturn Roe vs Wade yesterday did not come as a surprise. This has been a long time coming. Read the rest at Medium
Academic Research & Writing
I am an academic social worker writing and researching using an Intersectional Feminist lens.
Current Research: Adolescent Girls’ Self-Worth: A Phenomenological Study into the Construct of Self-Worth
PI: Erin L Nau, Adelphi University School of Social Work, Garden City, NY
A Phenomenological study about how early adolescent girls understand self-worth and their experiences of girlhood. The aims of the research are as follow Aim Number 1: Develop an understanding of Self-Worth as a unique construct, as experienced by early adolescent girls. Aim Number 2: Develop an understanding of what impacts early adolescent girls’ self-worth, including their relationships, and internalization of gender norms.
Aim Number 3: Develop an understanding of how self-worth impacts other aspects of early adolescent girls’ lives.
Current Research: The Long-Term Impact of Social Worker Led Support Groups on Breast Cancer Survivors
PI: Erin L Nau, Adelphi University School of Social Work, Garden City, NY
Co-Investigator: Hillary Rutter Adelphi NY Statewide Breast Cancer Hotline and Support Program, Garden City, NY
A quantitative study to understand the emotional impact of Breast Cancer Support groups on Breast Cancer Survivors. The initial data analysis shows that while most Breast Cancer survivors still think about breast cancer at least weekly they often think of the relationships they developed and the support they received. It also shows that most attendees felt that being in a group made it easier to handle their diagnosis over time.
Nau, E (2019). A Place in History; Adelphi New York Statewide Breast Cancer Hotline and Support Program Group Work: Creating Space for All Voices
Breast cancer today is widely discussed in our communities
and the options for support services are varied and pervasive. However,
forty years ago breast cancer was not openly discussed among patients
and their need for support was even more pressing than it is today.
Founded in 1980, the Adelphi NY Statewide Breast Cancer Hotline and Support Program was the first program of its kind in New York State and one of the first in the country. This paper explores the history of the program, the theoretical perspectives that have guided the program, and the role of group work throughout the agency.Cohen, C., Howard, A., McGee, K., Nau, E. (2019). Actualizing the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development through Social Group Work. Group Work: Creating Space for All Voices
When skillfully implemented across organizational levels,
group work approaches appear highly effective in making progress
towards achieving the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social
Development (IASSW, IFSW, ICSW, 2012) Four exemplary cases studies of diverse programs in the Metropolitan New York area demonstrate group work integration at the client, staff, and administrative levels. Thematic analysis suggests that knowledge and commitment to groupwork supports cross-sector infusion of nimble, culturally relevant, and social justice informed practices that contribute to program effectiveness, staff development, and client and community benefit.IN THE MEDIA
I provide expert commentary in the media. Here are some highlights.
THE ISLAND NOW | THE MANHASSET TIMES
CONTACT
I'm available for tele-mental health counseling, clinical supervision, speaking engagements, and expert commentary.
© 2020 Erin L. Nau