About Brian
Brian Colangelo is a licensed clinical social worker who helps people facing stress, anxiety, addictions, trauma, depression, grief, and struggles with self-esteem. He works with concerns like sleeping problems, panic attacks, mood swings, and feelings of emptiness. He also supports issues tied to LGBT identity, parenting strains, career stress, and compassion fatigue.
Brian practices from New Jersey and brings 15 years of experience to his work. He favors direct, honest communication in sessions.
Background and approach
He invites clients to say when something does not feel right so they can adjust the work together. Sessions aim to be practical and collaborative, focused on what the client needs day to day. Brian describes therapy as a shared process rather than a one-way fix.
His background includes a Master of Social Work and extensive work in trauma counseling, including supporting survivors of sexual assault in individual and group settings. He also teaches part time at local colleges and draws on many therapeutic approaches in his practice. This mix of classroom and clinical work informs his practical, experience-based style.
Outside of clinical work he values family, friends, and time outdoors. He mentions personal healing from trauma as part of his commitment to the work, and he brings a straightforward, occasionally sarcastic manner to sessions. He is attentive to social harms like racism and homophobia and sees addressing those harms as part of his role as a therapist.
People who choose to work with Brian can expect a therapist who listens, adjusts to feedback, and uses a blend of methods to meet real-life problems. He asks questions, offers tools, and helps clients figure out practical next steps to feel better and manage day-to-day life.
Approaches to online work and what they look like
Client-Centered Therapy focuses on following the client's lead and creating a space where they can speak openly. It is useful for building trust, exploring values, and deciding what matters most in daily life.Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, looks at how thoughts, feelings, and actions interact. Sessions often include practical exercises to change unhelpful thinking and develop coping skills for anxiety, depression, and mood swings.
EMDR is a trauma-focused method that works with how disturbing memories are stored in the body and mind. It can be helpful for people managing post-traumatic stress and intense reactions tied to past events.
Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will discuss goals, preferences, and past experiences and then collaborate with the client to choose techniques that fit. That choice can change over time as needs shift, and the therapist adjusts plans together with the client.
Online sessions offer a range of formats - video calls, phone, live chat, and text messaging - to suit different schedules and situations. Video is good for full sessions and deeper conversation. Phone can work when bandwidth is limited or for shorter check-ins. Live chat and text messaging are useful for quick support, between-session check-ins, or when typing feels easier than speaking. These options make it possible to keep therapy consistent even with a busy life.
Frequently asked questions
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Specialties and expertise
Top specialties
Also works with
- Avoidant personality
- Bipolar disorder
- Career difficulties
- Codependency
- Compassion fatigue
- Coping with life changes
- Depression
- Drug and alcohol addiction
- Emptiness
- Fatherhood issues
- Forgiveness
- Grief
- Guilt and shame
- Impulsivity
- Isolation / loneliness
- LGBT
- Men's issues
- Mood disorders
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Parenting issues
- Personality disorders
- Post-traumatic stress
- Self esteem
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexuality
- Sleeping disorders
- Smoking / vaping cessation
Therapeutic approaches
- Experience
- 15 years
- Licensed
- New Jersey
- Languages
- English