Ken Howard, LCSW, Counselor in West Hollywood, 90069

My Approach to Helping

I help people overcome the kinds of problems that keep them up at night and distract them during the day. What is the situation for you? Are you worried because you are feeling increasingly depressed or anxious lately? Do you worry that you're using alcohol or club drugs too much? Do you and your partner argue frequently about sex, drugs, money, or stress? Are you adjusting to testing positive for HIV? Are you frustrated at not having a boyfriend? Are you stressed out due to your job? Do you want to change careers, or just cope better with the job you have? Are you having feelings that scare you? Are you trying to kick a habit? Are you doing pretty well, but still could use someone to talk to about important personal goals like increasing your income or losing weight? I specialize in helping gay men with any or all of these through a variety of techniques in counseling, psychotherapy, and life coaching.

More Info About My Practice

My job is to help people improve their health, mental health, career, finances, relationships, and overall quality of life. I support their personal growth by helping them overcome barriers and achieve personal goals, at their own pace and in their own way. I'm not a "newbie" or an intern; I've been doing this work full-time since 1992, and I apply this experience to help new clients solve problems, sometimes in a way similar to what I've seen previous clients do; experience counts. I'm also the author of a number of articles and columns, and I give workshops as a public speaker. I'm conveniently located two blocks east of La Cienega at Santa Monica and Croft (across the street from Barney's Beanery), at 8430 Santa Monica Boulevard, Suite 100, West Hollywood (90069). My office is comfortable, and sound-proofed for your confidentiality. I have been licensed as a psychotherapist (Licensed Clinical Social Worker, #LCS18290) since 1997. I am a graduate of UCLA (BA, 1987) and of the USC School of Social Work (MSW, 1994), where I received special training in mental health and psychiatric disorders (depression, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety, etc.). My job is to give you the opportunity to have a private, safe, confidential space to discuss any issues that affect you that impact your quality of life. Many people think they have to really "need" therapy to come in; that's not true. Our work can be as simple as focusing on reducing stressful things in your life (symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress, conflict, or negative habits), or increasing positive things in your life (relationships, achievements, confidence, joys). This is done through counseling using several techniques, including the cognitive-behavioral approach, which is very interactive and focused on changing the way you think about yourself, which changes the way you feel, which changes your behaviors, which changes your life in all kinds of positive ways. With some people, I also draw from a more casual "life coaching" approach, where people learn how to get more things done, deal with anger, manage their time, control their drinking or using, make a budget, increase their income, balance work and play, plan their careers, improve their self-esteem, or communicate better with others.

How Psychotherapy Can Help

My job is to help people improve their health, mental health, career, finances, relationships, and overall quality of life. I support their personal growth by helping them overcome barriers and achieve personal goals, at their own pace and in their own way. I'm not a "newbie" or an intern; I've been doing this work full-time since 1992, and I apply this experience to help new clients solve problems, sometimes in a way similar to what I've seen previous clients do; experience counts. I'm also the author of a number of articles and columns, and I give workshops as a public speaker. I'm conveniently located two blocks east of La Cienega at Santa Monica and Croft (across the street from Barney's Beanery), at 8430 Santa Monica Boulevard, Suite 100, West Hollywood (90069). My office is comfortable, and sound-proofed for your confidentiality. I have been licensed as a psychotherapist (Licensed Clinical Social Worker, #LCS18290) since 1997. I am a graduate of UCLA (BA, 1987) and of the USC School of Social Work (MSW, 1994), where I received special training in mental health and psychiatric disorders (depression, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, social anxiety, etc.). My job is to give you the opportunity to have a private, safe, confidential space to discuss any issues that affect you that impact your quality of life. Many people think they have to really "need" therapy to come in; that's not true. Our work can be as simple as focusing on reducing stressful things

My Role as a Therapist

I help people overcome the kinds of problems that keep them up at night and distract them during the day. What is the situation for you? Are you worried because you are feeling increasingly depressed or anxious lately? Do you worry that you're using alcohol or club drugs too much? Do you and your partner argue frequently about sex, drugs, money, or stress? Are you adjusting to testing positive for HIV? Are you frustrated at not having a boyfriend? Are you stressed out due to your job? Do you want to change careers, or just cope better with the job you have? Are you having feelings that scare you? Are you trying to kick a habit? Are you doing pretty well, but still could use someone to talk to about important personal goals like increasing your income or losing weight? I specialize in helping gay men with any or all of these through a variety of techniques in counseling, psychotherapy, and life coaching.

Services I Provide

Individual Therapy & Counseling
Marriage, Couples, or Relationship Counseling
Group Therapy
Mediation
Coaching
Consultation
Clinical Supervision
Online Counseling / Phone Therapy

Ages I Work With

Adults

Languages I Speak

English
Spanish

Groups I Work With

While I have specialized in working with Gay men since 1992 in my practice, research, writing, and speaking, I welcome all adults to my practice in West Hollywood. I work with a number of straight men and women, lesbians, and also have a specialty working with people living with HIV/AIDS and other serious physical conditions. I have extensive experience with clients who are experiencing depression or anxiety, and I help them get connected to several trusted psychiatrists for medication monitoring, while I provide their psychotherapy. Lately, I have been working with a number of victims of discrimination who are in litigation, and are using their therapy to manage the anxiety associated with that. I have also worked extensively with abuse survivors (often, either domestic violence, or male incest/sexual abuse survivors). Another trend I see is gay men who are in good relationships that they are trying to make even better; gay men who are seeking relationhips and need coaching for successful sex/dating/domestic life; gay men in recovery from drugs/alcohol or behavioral addictions (sex, gambling, shopping); gay men who are newly single; and business executives who aren't seeking "counseling" as much as they need coaching for running their business and taking their company to the next "level". Because of my location in West Hollywood, I work with a number of actors and writers, coaching them on their career development and helping them cope with economic setbacks or break through creative blocks.

Therapy Approaches I Use

Anger Management
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy /REBT
Existential Psychotherapy
Humanistic Psychology
Imago Relationship Therapy
Integration of different therapy models
Jungian Psychotherapy
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy
Person Centered / Rogerian
Positive Psychology
Positive Psychotherapy
Self Psychology
Solution Focused Therapy

Helping People Find Therapists & Advocating for Ethical and Healthy Therapy & Marriage Counseling Practices

Gay Men's Therapy - Counseling and Coaching for Gay Men, Couples - Ken Howard, LCSW