MCM Collaborative

Do you have clients looking for additional support to fulfill their New Year's resolutions and intentions? We've got some openings in three great groups starting up in the coming weeks. Liberated and Accessing the Erotic return for new cycles, and we'll have brand new, Food, Freedom & Firsts, a group for BIPOC undergrads. FOOD, FREEDOM & FIRSTS is a low-fee virtual therapeutic support group for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of color) undergraduate students. This group starts conversations about students’ relationships to food, routine and self-care while living independently for the first time. This group will be facilitated by Aayushi & Taryn. Find out more at https://lnkd.in/d2BDSVYu LIBERATED is a therapeutic group for queer Black men facilitated by Bertram. This group invites members to explore and receive support around identity, relationships and everyday challenges. This group will meet Wednesday evenings at our offices in Manhattan. Find out more at https://lnkd.in/dACYGQ97 ACCESSING THE EROTIC, facilitated by Jordan, is just the place for Black femmes looking to access pleasure in their lives, sexually or otherwise, and who may struggle to really feel their feelings. This group will meet on Thursday evenings at our offices in Manhattan. https://lnkd.in/ePpNAsTA

To broaden reach and increase access to folks throughout New York State, Liberated is moving online! Liberated is a therapeutic support group for queer Black men seeking mutual understanding, care, and encouragement as we navigate our identities, relationships and existence. The group will be facilitated by Bertram Johnson. The group will meet on Wednesdays at 8pm. For more info and to sign up for an intake go to https://lnkd.in/dACYGQ97

In the latest from our Cultivating Clinicians series, Therapist in Training Aayushi Gala reflects on the exciting and daunting process of integrating theoretical frameworks while discovering her own style of clinical practice. The biggest lessons and advice to other aspiring therapists are: ?Let your personality shine: My curiosity and calm demeanor have naturally influenced my therapeutic style. I find that sharing relatable analogies or personal insights (when appropriate) helps clients feel more comfortable and understood. ?Embrace feedback: Mentorship is a chance to explore different styles, try new approaches, and refine your personal therapeutic identity. ?Reflect often: Journaling, peer discussions, and self-assessment are excellent ways to engage in reflection. Be patient with yourself—developing a therapeutic identity is a lifelong process. Read the rest at https://tr.ee/gxSJ3-0Spi Also, this semester Aayushi is co-facilitating Food, Freedom & Firsts, a virtual, low-fee six-week group for BIPOC undergrads looking support with their relationships to food, creating healthy habits and engaging in self-care while living independently. Find out more and sign up for an intake at bit.ly/FoodFreedom2025

Accessing the Erotic is therapeutic support group therapy for Black femmes rooted in Audre Lorde’s declaration that “the erotic is not a question only of what we do; it is a question of how acutely and fully we can feel in the doing.” This is the place for those looking to access pleasure in their lives, sexually or otherwise, and who may struggle to really feel their feelings. This group is facilitated by Jordan Gaines, MFT-LP and meets Thursdays from 7:15-8:30pm starting Feb 27th at our offices near Madison Park in Manhattan and will meet for five months. Sign up for an intake at https://lnkd.in/ePpNAsTA

Liberated is a therapeutic support group for queer Black men seeking mutual understanding, care, and encouragement as we navigate our identities, relationships and existence. The group will be facilitated by Bertram Johnson. The group will meet for 20 weeks beginning in March on Wednesdays at 8pm at our offices near Madison Park in Manhattan. The fee for the group is $100/session; some insurance is accepted and sliding scale is available. Sign up for an intake at https://lnkd.in/dACYGQ97

Food, Freedom & Firsts is a virtual, low-fee six-week group for BIPOC undergrads looking support with their relationships to food, creating healthy habits and engaging in self-care while living independently. The group offers tools for building sustainable routines, managing emotional triggers and fostering self-compassion. The group will be facilitated by Aayushi Gala & Taryn Crosby, LCSW on Mondays at noon or Tuesdays evenings. The investment for the group is $25/session. Prospective members can find out more and sign up for an intake at https://lnkd.in/d2BDSVYu

You may be familiar with the concept of the transmission of intergenerational trauma - how trauma responses can be passed down to through generations - but have you considered how legacies of care and resilience can be shared, as well? Familial (chosen and by origin) and cultural legacies can serve as sources of strength, healing and resilience, passed down through generations. Through honoring ancestral wisdom, cultural traditions, values and practices we may tap into our inheritance of strength and ways of healing. Finding connection with those who have come before us can allow us to be in conversation with legacies - those we wish to draw from and those we wish to interrupt - creating new possibilities for ourselves and our communities. What are some legacies of care that you've inherited?

For creatives, mental health matters just as much as their craft. Therapy, especially with a therapist experienced working with artists and performers, can be a powerful tool to help navigate the highs and lows of the creative process, while staying connected to passion and yourself. Ways That Psychotherapy Can Help Creatives Thrive: Challenge Imposter Syndrome: Many creatives struggle with feeling “not good enough” and comparing themselves to others. Therapy can support connecting to yourself authentically and challenging self-criticism, hyper-productivity and hustle culture. Support Emotional Resilience: The creative journey often involves rejection, uncertainty and vulnerability. Therapy provides a space to process these experiences and build resilience for navigating them. Unblock Creative Flow: Therapy can help uncover and address barriers like perfectionism, self-doubt and fear, inviting creative expression to flow more freely Build Better Boundaries: Have a hard time asking for payment owed? Experiencing conflict in your creative partnerships? Therapy can support creatives in establishing and maintaining boundaries with collaborators, clients or themselves, helping to preserve and respect their creative energy. Schedule a free consultation with an MCM Collaborative therapist who gets it. https://lnkd.in/dTrcjqdJ

In our Cultivating Clinicians series, we explore experiences on the road to becoming a therapist as people of color. In the first of the series, Aayushi reflects on making her decision on where and what to study, the surprising things asked of her and how she takes care of herself as a therapist in training. Read more about her journey at https://lnkd.in/ePkJxSvP

On this Transgender Day of Remembrance we honor our trans siblings and community members who have died due to transphobic violence. We mourn the dead and fight like hell for the living, recognizing who we have lost and the ways interpersonal and state violence, like policing and poverty, are an enemy to us all. We recognize that we are all implicated. That, through our personal struggles, we are responsible for one another and will be the ones to save ourselves. We got us.