TERÉSA STERN, LCSW, SEP
Terésa Stern is a psychotherapist specializing in clients who have experienced trauma. She is the owner of Mindful Therapy Brooklyn, where she sees clients and serves as Clinical Supervisor.
Terésa supports clients in their journey to connect with self and others, build self-regulation and flexibility, learn to self-advocate in healthy ways, experience joy, and live in the here and now. She considers the relationship between herself and each client to be an important component of therapy, and values the shared humanity, humor, and compassion in each of those relationships.
Terésa Stern earned her MSW from the Hunter College School of Social Work, graduating with honors in a trauma-focused concentration created by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). She wrote a textbook for graduate students, commissioned by the Network, about trauma’s impact on child neurobiological development. Terésa has given presentations for numerous organizations, including the Somatic Experiencing Trauma Institute, St. Vincent’s Children’s Home in Michigan, and the Lineage Project. She began working in the trauma survivors’ community in 1990, serving at the Mount Sinai Sexual Abuse and Violence Intervention Program (SAVI) as public speaker, emergency room advocate, rape crisis counselor, and support group facilitator. In 2008 she founded Starfish Body & Soul, a holistic movement program for adult survivors of childhood abuse, and led ongoing groups at SAVI and the Joyful Heart Foundation.
As a social work intern, Terésa worked with children, adolescents and families at Good Shepherds Services in the Bronx and at the Bellevue Hospital Child and Adolescent Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic. She completed a 3-year training in Somatic Experiencing® (SE®) and has worked as a teaching assistant at SE® trainings since 2013. After training in 2012 at the Boston Trauma Center in SMART (Sensory Motor Arousal Regulation Treatment), a modality for children that incorporates sensory integration, Terésa and her colleague Marice Maldari co-founded Mindful Parenting Brooklyn and created the first SMART room in New York City for therapy with children. Terésa became an Internal Family Systems therapist in 2016. She is trained in Somatic Resilience and Regulation (SRR), which uses touch as a therapeutic approach to trauma. Terésa became certified in Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy and MDMA Assisted Psychotherapy through Fluence and has been practicing KAP since 2022.
Terésa is the mother of two adult daughters. A published writer, she likes to hike, bike, dance, cook, make collages, and play with her dog, Ernie. Her previous careers included typography, marketing writing and design, and freelance journalism. She has been involved in fighting for justice and equality since 1968.
Testimonials
When we started seeing Terésa, we were struggling to find the answers for our 3-year-old son, who has sensory processing issues. After just a few visits, Terésa helped us develop a deeper understanding of the struggles our son faces, and how to help him overcome them. Terésa is kind, caring, and compassionate and has a deep knowledge of body-based therapeutic interventions. Thanks to her help, we have a program in place to help our son, and we’ve seen enormous progress in his happiness and development.
— J & M
We first came to work with Terésa shortly after an acute and life-changing family health crisis—our daughter had been seriously ill. Although the crisis had subsided, our daughter and the rest of our family were struggling. Terésa met with my husband and me first and then with our 6-year-old. I loved how Terésa used physical and somatic modalities. This was not talk therapy or play therapy or marriage counseling. It was something in between and beyond. We continue to use tools learned and discovered with Terésa. We are so lucky to have her in our lives.
—J & E
Teresa’s holistic perspective and clear insights were an incredible support to our family. She worked with our children when they were about five years and eight years old, one-on-one in person and online, and would occasionally see them in a joint session. Teresa met with and communicated with us as parents regularly.
In our parent sessions, Teresa helped us to discern what my partner and I could work on as a parenting team or in our personal healing work, as well as what we could work on directly with our children. Her support enabled us to feel more confident and serene as parents, providing observations, context, and practices that directly contributed to our and our children’s wellbeing. Teresa’s family systems approach helped us to know our children and ourselves more deeply and become more patient, effective, and positive co-parents. Thank you, Teresa.
—C & S
Our family turned to Teresa for support during a challenging time when we were not certain how to support our son. She supported our whole family’s emotional needs with compassion, clarity, and creativity. We feel very fortunate to have her in our corner.