Migdalia Valdes

I began my adult life as a photographer. That training — learning to see, to truly observe, to understand what's beneath the surface — led me directly to becoming a therapist. The two practices share the same core: paying close attention to what someone is really showing you.

I specialize in working with women and couples on relationship patterns, codependency, and narcissistic abuse recovery. These are often interwoven challenges, and I've built my practice around the kind of relational, insight-oriented work they require. I also work with anxiety, ADHD, family dynamics, and the broader work of understanding yourself and your patterns.

I'm an LCSW practicing in Nyack, NY and across New York via telehealth, trained at San Francisco State University, with over a decade of experience and 20 active clients.

My approach centers on patterns — how they develop, what they protect, and how to shift them when they've stopped serving you. We work to support, deconstruct, understand, and ultimately change the patterns driving your challenges, from a strengths-based foundation.

I draw on Narrative Therapy to help you examine and reshape the stories you've been telling about yourself. Schema therapy addresses the deeper belief systems formed in early life that continue to drive current behavior. MBCT builds awareness and the capacity to pause — especially valuable for anxiety and recurring emotional cycles. Behavioral Couples Therapy provides structured, evidence-based tools for relationship work.

Motivational Interviewing guides how I work when ambivalence is part of the picture. Everything adapts to you and your goals.

Our first session is about getting to know each other and beginning to understand what's brought you here. We'll talk about what you want to change, what you want to understand better, and what feels most important to work on.

I'll listen closely — it's what I do — and do my best to make sure you feel comfortable and heard from the very first conversation.