Nicole O'Brien

I always wanted to be in a profession where I could really help people. What I love about being a therapist is being able to create a space where people feel genuinely safe and understood, a place where we can build skills that a person can take into their daily life in order to grow.

I'm a marriage and family therapist by trade, and in that work, I've frequently seen anxiety-related disorders. OCD interests me because it's very distressing for people and it can be especially difficult to manage. It gets in the way of people's day-to-day functioning. But there is an effective method to help people. Being able to deliver that method to people is really important to me.

Shame, substance use disorders, depression, mood disorders, and personality disorders. I like to look at things relationally—how does this affect how you're able to relate to others, how others are able to relate to you? I do a lot of specialized work in systemic thinking and family interaction.

Therapy can be hard, but it is one of the most powerful things you can do for yourself. It is so brave just to acknowledge that you want help or support on something. It's important that you follow through with the work. But people are here for you, and it's great that you showed up.

That's actually pretty common. You're not alone in feeling that way. Just vocalizing that you're scared can be freeing. It might be hard to talk about, and that's OK. It may feel like you're the only one who's ever experienced something like this, but you’re not. This is a space of non-judgment. Nothing you can say is going to scare me or is going to upset me, or make me think less of you. This is a space where you can say what you need to say, even if it's hard.