Sheron Gershelis, ASW# 100562

If you have come across my page you may be looking for a 'lift me up' in life. You have work, relational and life stressors that have overwhelmed you and you are unsure what to do next. You are trying to open the next chapter in your life, but your trauma, anxiety, and depression override you. You want to make sure that your next steps are accurate and lead to only positive outcomes. You want to stop feeling gloomy and start to enjoy the beautiful days outside. This is where I come in and help guide you in making YOUR right decision. I will help you through your journey in becoming worry-free and help you take the next steps in your life. 

My name is Sheron Gershelis and I am an Associate Clinical Social Worker (ASW #100562) that received my master’s degree in Social Work with an emphasis on Children, Youth and Families. I graduated with my master’s degree in December 2020 from University of Southern California (USC). I also received my bachelor’s degree in biology from California State University, Northridge in August 2016. My educational background has led me to have a well-rounded approach that is scientific yet digs into your childhood development to learn the core issues that lead to present symptoms. Together we will discover how to heal the inner child to develop an independent adult that can function in today’s world.

Trauma and PTSD:

Maybe your trauma stems from childhood abuse, experiences, or environmental causes. Or maybe your trauma stems from adult domestic violence, traumatic losses or events. This may cause you to have nightmares, flashbacks, avoidance of triggers, anger, guilt, hypervigilance, insomnia, or severe anxiety. I have extensive experience working with adults that have been sexually abused as children, military veterans that have served in wars, and victims of human trafficking. Together with my clients, we can build an environment that creates a sense of safety and leads to emotional regulation. We develop a mutual understanding of the traumatic events and try to learn skills that lead the client to feel resilient and capable of overcoming their past experiences.

Anxiety:

Do you ever feel like your heart is racing, your palms are sweating, nauseous, light-headed, breathing shallow, or restless? Does it feel like you have reached doomsday, and nothing seems to be attainable, or that you're not even capable of doing what you want to? Whether your anxiety stems from mild daily anxiousness to severe debilitating anxiety and fear, I am here to help you overcome this uneasy feeling. As a severe anxiety survivor myself, I am able to take a walk in your shoes and understand how you feel and where you are coming from. Together we can learn coping mechanisms that are tailored to you to help you overcome the daily anxiety that stops you from doing what you want. Anxiety can lie in fear and phobias, as well as, general nervousness that can make you avoid activities and stop you from enjoying your life. We will work together using evidence-based approaches to help you overcome your fear and panic to allow you to have a better quality of life.

Depression:

You may feel that you have no hope left or you just don’t want to get out of bed. You’re sleeping over 12 hours a day, you are unmotivated to do things you used to do and you completely isolated yourself from your closest people. You spend hours and days crying or feeling completely irritable. Sometimes it gets so bad that you start feeling suicidal and you just don’t know what to do anymore. I am here to help you learn that you are not alone and that together we will hold hands until you are feeling healed. I have worked extensively with clients that are depressed and suicidal for years and have successfully helped them feel whole again. My clients would successfully learn skills that would help them get out of bed, shower and restart their daily lives that they were used to.

Anger Management:

Anger comes with feelings that make you understand that you don’t have control over yourself. It starts with a trigger that can escalate into a crisis until you have reached a recovery. Triggers can be environmental, traumatic, and internal. Through our meetings, I will help you understand better coping skills and management techniques when you are feeling triggered. We will work together to find the right recipe for you that works best for you. 

Couples/Family Therapy:

Sometimes family is all we got, but other times we feel that we can’t stop bickering and fighting over miscommunication, disrespect and not seeing eye to eye. Being so close to your partner or your family member makes you feel like you can treat them however you would like, and they would always still stick around. This is where I can come in and help. I have worked with multiple couples and families to help them gain a mutual understanding of each other and create healthy relationships and boundaries. I have used an eclectic therapeutic approach with my families and couples because using multiple theoretical orientations and techniques with different people works best.

Evidence-Based Practices:

In my practice, I implement several modalities like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR).

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT):

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy ties together our actions, behaviors, and emotions. It states that our actions lead to specific emotions that then lead to behaviors. Or maybe our emotions lead to specific actions and behaviors. Through CBT we are able to identify and challenge your emotions, behaviors, and actions to help replace them with positive and realistic ones.

Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT):

This evidence-based practice is suitable for people that experience emotions very intensely. Sometimes regulating emotions may seem impossible, but DBT helps teach you skills that will regulate those emotions to help lead a better quality of lifestyle.

Mindfulness:

The practice of mindfulness is important for all people and helps put our minds in a peaceful state. Mindfulness helps you become conscious and aware of the present moment while accepting your thoughts and bodily sensations. This practice helps bring your body and mind into your “Zen” place which in turn allows you to look at experiences in a positive and healthy way.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR):

EMDR has become a very popular technique in modern psychotherapy that uses bilateral stimulation to help reprocess past experiences into more positive ones. EMDR is very helpful in PTSD as it helps “restore” our traumatic negative events and “refile” them into more positive beliefs about ourselves. Through EMDR I have successfully treated many military veterans to help reprocess their traumatic events from wars and life experiences.

Solution-Focused Therapy:

Solution-Focused Therapy allows us to build a solution rather than focus on problem-solving. This type of therapy allows us to look at your current resources and future hopes, rather than present problems and past causes. Solution-Focused Therapy is a brief therapy that involves shorter amounts of sessions but builds a solution for a specific problem. Together we can help target the problem by building a solution and allowing you to overcome the issue you are presently dealing with.

Let’s Get The Help.

My clients and I work together through the journey from where you are now to where you want to be. We do this by exploring your anxiety, depression, and trauma and the impact of that stressor on your life to discover and reach for your own answers. I guide you on a path of discovery to allow you to find your own correct path of healing.

You know you want to change your life for the better, but you’re just unsure of exactly what it is. This is where I come in and help you find the change that you are looking for. I am here to help you find your path to healing. I am here to listen to your stressors and everything that’s happening in your life and help you navigate and find a path forward.

Please do not hesitate to contact me for a free 20-minute consultation.

Individual therapy sessions are 50 minutes/$140 per session and couples sessions are 50 minutes/$170 per session. 

Email: sherongershelis@gmail.com

 Phone #: 323-818-3335