Paul LaFreniere, Ph.D.
Limited Permit Psychologist
Midtown + Virtual
People come to therapy for many different reasons: sometimes because they are suffering acutely with painful symptoms, because they have reached a place of stasis in their lives, or because they want greater insight into their internal worlds. As your therapist, my goal is to provide a space where you can discover what makes you feel fulfilled, alive, and heard, both internally and externally. I believe that a sense of safety and trust in the therapeutic relationship is key to meaningful growth and change. To this end, I aim to create a therapeutic space which is warm, genuine, and nonjudgemental where you can freely explore your life and its challenges.
My therapeutic style is primarily relational and psychodynamic, while also drawing on elements of DBT and mindfulness. In practice, this means that I begin from a place of curiosity, compassion and attentiveness, rooted in the belief that each individual’s personal truths and desires are unique. In therapy, I will work with you to explore your history, internal experience, and relationships with others, as well as provide you with the tools to more gratifyingly navigate your life in the here-and-now. Making space for play and humor is an important aspect of my approach; in therapy, as in life, play and humor can be means of accessing the deepest and most creative parts of ourselves. Exploration of issues of identity, both in terms of the strengths our identities provide us and in terms of the trauma of systemic oppression, form an important part of my practice.
I welcome patients of all racial, ethnocultural, sexual, religious, and gender identities, and aim to practice from an affirming and consciously intersectional stance. I have worked extensively with anxiety, depression, relationship difficulties, and trauma. I have a specific interest and specialization working with members of the LGBTQ+ community, with a particular focus on relationships and gender transition.
Training
I received my Masters and Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from The City College of New York, CUNY. I completed my pre-doctoral internship at North Central Bronx Hospital. I have held clinical positions at Hunter College Counseling Center, and the Psychological Center at City College. My research focuses on examining the complexities of the therapeutic relationship, and how both patients and therapists make use of it.