Kaitlyn Anstotz

Hello! If you are reading this, that means you have decided to begin therapy. I may be biased, but I think that is fantastic! Whether this is your very first time or you are trying again, I want you to take a moment to feel proud of yourself for choosing to prioritize yourself, your needs, and your mental health by beginning this journey. I believe that therapy is truly a work of heart for both me as the therapist, but also you as the client. Therapy is a very personal thing that requires you to put in the work, which doesn't mean it is always going to be easy, but I believe that it is worth it because you are worth it.

My name is Kaitlyn and I am an LCSW with about 8 years experience in the field of mental health and social work. I received my Bachelor's degree with Psychology with minors in Spanish and Sociology from Rowan University in 2018. I then began working as a mental health counselor at the CASTLE Program, a partial hospitalization program (PHP) for children with behavioral and mental health challenges. As I continued the early stages of my career, I chose to go to graduate school and pursue my Master's of Social Work (MSW) from Rutgers University in their Intensive Weekend Program. I worked full time, went to school technically part-time, but year-round, and also completed my internship at CASTLE as well. I graduated with my MSW in 2023 and obtained my social work license (LSW) that same year.

I have worked in various levels of care from PHP down to Outpatient working with individuals and families in a wide range of ages and presenting problems including generalized anxiety, relationship stress/trauma, self-esteem, family dynamics and communication challenges within relationships, and transitions from incarceration, to name a few!

Therapy with me is a team effort and that means we are in this together. I will be upfront in saying that I do not have all the answers, but I am ready to help support you and your growth to find the answers you are looking for. I believe that you are your own expert, so I am here to listen, support, and, when it is appropriate, also challenge you to dig deeper and reveal the things you may already know. Together we will come up with your goals for therapy and work through the steps it takes to achieving those goals.

The first time we meet, my focus will be on gathering information from you about your history and what is currently going on. We will then collaborate to establish a treatment plan for our work together; think of this as a roadmap for our sessions, but remember you are in the driver's seat! From there, what you can expect out of our first session together is just easing into things and building our therapeutic relationship. I don't expect you to spill all of your inner most thoughts and feelings to a stranger, at least not right away, so we will take it one step at a time, one session at a time, and be ready to go at your own pace.