Bruce Barrett (LMHC)

Throughout my counseling career, I have always been interested — fascinated, in fact — in finding meaning and value in the experiences of others, joyful and sorrowful, frightened or courageous, and in helping them to grow in their own lives. Although I am not rigid in my approach to therapy, I see myself as a Narrative Therapist (Dulwich Model), with a strong background in Gestalt Therapy for dream work and understanding polarities (contradictions) in our lives, Gendlin’s Focusing for sifting through psychological uncertainty, and along with Focusing, a strong interest in mindfulness-based stress management as a support technique for personal growth.. I have worked as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Massachusetts since 2012 (including my licensure training), and for many more years prior to that as an Associate Psychologist (Masters Level) in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. I also worked for several years as a Certified Alcoholism Counselor (CAC) in Massachusetts in both inpatient and outpatient settings with a strong 12-step orientation. I am myself a recovering alcoholic, with 40 years of continuous sobriety — a day at a time! I have a particular interest in working with people living on the Autism Spectrum, both adults and younger folks. Like many who work in the field, I bring personal family experience to the work, and I take pride in my ability to find common ground with people living on or near the Spectrum. More generally, I have an abiding interest in working with military family members, including those who have long since left the life of being a Military Dependent. As a former Army Brat and “Third Culture Kid,” (TCK) I bring particular awareness and concern to the life-long issues of those whose developmental years were spent “inside the Fortress, ” as Mary Edwards Wertsch describes it, including those TCKs who grew up in cultures and countries overseas.