
Harlene dela Torre-McIlwain, MA
MHC-LP
New York City NY
I approach therapy with curiosity, compassion, and humor. My therapy is guided by an integrative perspective that is body-focused, emotion-focused, and mindfulness-centric. My hope is to create a safe, nonjudgmental, and accepting therapeutic space where you can bring your whole, authentic self despite and because the work of self-exploration becoming challenging.
AS A BIPOC AND FIRST-GENERATION IMMIGRANT I understand the challenges, stresses, and difficulties of immigration and acculturation. With change, there is grief and loss but there is also renewal that comes with (re)discovering your resilience, strengths, and capabilities. And so, whether you choose to salvage whatever is left or build anew is up to you, but you do not have to do it alone.
I BELIEVE THAT THE POWER OF THERAPY lies not in the modalities or beautiful words spoken but in making you feel seen, heard, accepted, and challenged.
THERAPY IS DIFFICULT WORK, and you will feel worse before you feel better. But I am here as your guide, resource, co-conspirator, cheerleader, advocate, and sometimes, devil’s advocate.
GIVE YOURSELF OVER to the therapeutic process and see what you are truly capable of within the confines of a safe, and accepting relationship.
Psychedelic harm reduction and integration