Jake Brennan, MA, LPC

About Me

I am a Pennsylvania Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and clinical supervisor. I hold a master’s degree in clinical mental health counseling and have been working in the mental health and addiction field since 2012.

My experience includes work in a diverse range of care environments, including in-patient rehab, partial hospitalization programs (PHP) and intensive outpatient programs (IOP) as well as residential living facilities for people with co-occurring metal health and substance use issues. I am also a clinical supervisor.

I currently work in private practice.

My Approach to Therapy

I believe we all carry meaningful past experiences that can be the source of old or unhealed wounds. Sometimes these wounds can present as feelings of disconnection, depression, racing thoughts, anxiety, substance use, self-harming behavior, or relationship problems. Wherever you’re at, we will work to build a relationship together that we can use to explore your life and where you are now with the goal of moving forward and growing in whatever ways you want. The therapist-client relationship is something I value deeply.

I am psychodynamic and relationally oriented, and from this stance I help people to address their problems at root levels. Therapy needs to be ‘worth it’ and I will do my best to go beyond symptom relief in order to work towards sustained and lasting change.

For people interested in coping skills and cognitive approaches, I am skilled in Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and mindfulness-based interventions and I incorporate these into treatment as needed to create stability and provide short term symptom relief.

When there is stability, therapy will often move towards deeper issues that drive behavior and impact emotional lives and relationships. Together we can find the stuck points that keep long standing patterns in place. Whatever the presenting issues — addiction, depression or something else — emotional integration, increased insight, connection to oneself and the ability to communicate effectively are common themes that come up in treatment with me.

I regularly participate in trainings for dance movement therapy. Creativity, spontaneity, humor and self-expression are fundamental aspects of life that inform my work. I work with adults of all ages as well as adolescents.

On Addiction Treatment:

I have an extensive background in working with substance use and addiction both in and outside of treatment settings and am able to talk about the specifics of addiction with knowledge and ease.

The best outcomes I see for people struggling with addiction happens when they are able to address relational and emotional aspects of their lives.

I can help with the difficult early stages of stabilizing use. From there, it is important to keep in mind that addictions are not simply “bad brain wiring.”

Addictions come from somewhere, and getting to the roots of what drives addiction can be life changing and help prevent future relapses.

There are a variety of approaches we can take to help you with your addiction:

• I do not require people to be abstinent or participate in anything they do not want to, such as AA.
• I am equally happy to work with people who participate in AA or NA, and have been able to help people deepen their 12-step work by addressing it in therapy.
• I have had success working with people who want to be abstinent, as well as with people who want to moderate their use or only stop using certain substances.
• I will be honest and forthright in helping to assess what is possible and do my part in helping work to get there.

Qualifications

• Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC)
• Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
• Certificates in Contextual Family Therapy
• Certificates in in dance, movement, and nonverbal communication based treatments

Specializes in Treating

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
• Trauma / PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)
• LGBTQIA + issues
• Bi-Polar
• Relationship Issues
• Men’s Issues
• Parental and Family Issues
• Grief and Loss
• Artists

More Info

Fees

My fees are $180 to $220 per session.

Availability

I tend to carry a mostly full caseload but am always open to accepting new patients. I am happy to have a free consultation call at any time to discuss treatment and see if we are a good fit.