MA, LAC, NCC
Ben is a Licensed Associate Counselor (LAC) and National Certified Counselor (NCC). He earned his Master of Arts degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Kean University. Ben has experience working as a counselor in a variety of settings including Outpatient, Intensive Outpatient, Halfway House Services, and Detox Facilities. He also has experience as a Crisis Intervention Specialist (CIS) while working for Children’s Mobile Response of Monmouth County.
During his time working as a therapist and crisis worker Ben has worked with children, teens, young adults, and adults with a variety of mental health issues including Substance Abuse Disorders, Trauma, Depression, PTSD, Anxiety, Bipolar Disorder, ADD/ADHD, OCD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Adjustment Disorders. Ben is a trauma informed and culturally competent counselor which includes being a LGBTQIA+ affirming therapist who takes all aspects of someone’s life into account throughout the therapy process.
Ben is a strong believer that the corner stone of a good counseling relationship is the “Therapeutic Alliance”, how strong the trust is between client and counselor. He believes that every client is unique and therefore their time in therapy deserves an individualized approach. He uses an eclectic approach to therapy which involves various evidence based treatment modalities including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), both Solution Focused and Solution Focused Family Therapy, Motivational Interviewing (MI), Family Systems Theory, and Person-Centered Therapy. Ben’s approach is unique as he also uses Psychoeducation and Neuroscience to help client’s not only achieve their goals but also understand the science behind the brain and why we behave the way that we do. Ben prefers a “casual” approach to counseling to ensure client comfort and safety.
In his free time Ben enjoys spending time with his family (which includes his dog Linguine and cat Trader Joe), friends, listening to music, cooking, singing, going to the beach, nature walks, watching TV/movies, and of course, playing video games.
“Hope is something you give yourself. That is the meaning of inner strength.” – Uncle Iroh
Supervised by Megan Rudman, MSW, LCSW