Seth Labovitz (he/him)

My treatment philosophy

“Summertime and the livin’ is easy,” as the song goes, is, for most of us, most of the time, a wish rather than reality.  I’ve noticed, and likely you have too, that life can be hard.  We all experience adversity, loss, uncertainty, and limitations as we contend with our own complicated and sometimes confused and conflicted selves.  Help – sometimes sought intentionally and sometimes serendipitous – can come in many forms and from many sources. Psychotherapy is a kind of help in which the patient or client engages with a professional trained in the science and art of understanding and alleviating human suffering.  As a Psychologist and psychotherapist, I stand in the belief that I don’t do anything “to” but rather “with” and “for” others – good therapy is collaborative – and that one must avoid a ‘one size fits all’ approach.  After all, we are complicated beings influenced by biology, family of origin, beliefs, history, culture and other factors.  In addition, therapy needs to speak to the client’s frame of reference, their understanding of the problem, and their goals for treatment.  Furthermore, and apart from the specific concern, problem or diagnosis that leads a person to seek therapy, effective therapy is always about “the person inside”; attends closely to the therapy relationship; and seeks to identify and promote the client’s own strengths and potential for recovery, healing and growth.  I ascribe to a humanistic psychotherapy which recognizes both universal needs (foremost for a sense of belonging and worth) and strivings (for growth and wholeness), and the uniqueness of each individual.  Moreover, while acknowledging the inevitability of conflict, struggle and limitations, this philosophy tends toward optimism and possibility.

Who I work with

My training and experience has been primarily with adults.  I enjoy working with individuals, couples, and groups.  I work with people on a wide range of problems and concerns including anxiety, stress, depression, self-esteem/self-worth, life transitions, grief and loss, and, especially, relationship difficulties and a history of trauma.

What therapy looks like in my office

It does NOT look like a dental office wherein the patient sits back and the doctor ‘fixes’ the problem.  As I noted above, therapy is not something “done to” another, but rather with and for them.  Expect therapy with me to be individualized, collaborative, and deeply respectful.

Expect me to attend closely to safety and trust, the therapy relationship more generally, and the degree to which therapy goals and the proposed path toward reaching those goals are clear and mutual.  At times we may focus more on understanding, at other times on change, and at other times on acceptance.  Always, however, your needs, perceptions and goals are foremost.  In all of this, I endeavor to be fully present, empathic and caring as I attempt to adhere to the conception of therapy as, in one author’s (Neil Jacobson’s) words, “an authentic, personal experience of human connection and compassionate challenge to the client’s own best possibilities.”

Why I became a counselor

Two things come to mind – that of formative situations and experiences of childhood and what I believe are my natural proclivities to listen, observe, understand, empathize and help.  A close relative suffered with a serious, persistent mental illness that greatly affected my family.  I wanted to understand my uncle’s suffering and wished that I could somehow alleviate his and my family’s pain and turmoil.  There were others, including members of my immediate family, who were also beset by various difficulties to which I found myself drawn, again, out of a desire both to understand and help.  I was and am still deeply curious about the lived experience, behavior and choices of others (as well as my own), and avid to respond to and attempt to help with that which undermines or limits the potential in each of us to lead meaningful, productive and satisfying lives.

My treatment theories and approaches

I utilize both a general theory and approach regarding the central question for therapist’s – that is, is our ‘help’ actually helping? – and those that are more specific to a given client and presenting problem.  So, for example, in working with an individual seeking help for anxiety and avoidance related to a history of trauma, I would, as always, bring to bear a person-centered and humanistic foundation and what I believe to be the sine qua non of effective therapy (i.e., understanding the client’s frame of reference and goals, attending to the therapy relationship, fostering strengths) and that which is more specific to trauma and its aftermath.  The latter would likely include a special focus on safety and stabilization; psychoeducation about trauma and recovery; and specific techniques for coping with re-experiencing and anxiety.  With regard to working with couples, I draw primarily on Integrative couple therapy as developed by Neil Jacobson and Andrew Christensen which employs both acceptance interventions and change techniques.

Finally, in my work with groups, I utilize primarily the interpersonal approach/process model in which group members, by focusing how they relate to each other in the group process, learn about and work on changing patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving for the sake of enhancing their psychological wellbeing and their relationships.

My certifications and training

I received my doctorate in clinical psychology at The Ohio State University wherein I was trained in both research and clinical practice.  I completed internships at the Veteran Affairs Medical Center in Cincinnati, OH in Clinical Psychology at the The Ohio State University Hospitals in Rehabilitation Psychology.  Subsequently, I was a staff clinical Psychologist at the W.G. (“Bill”) Hefner Salisbury VA Medical Center from 1992 to 2023 during which time I worked with Veterans in inpatient Psychiatry, a residential treatment program for post-traumatic stress disorder, and a general mental health outpatient clinic.  While I have participated in various trainings in the course of my career in Psychology, I have devoted myself especially to group psychotherapy, having become certified in Group Psychotherapy in 2008, maintaining my certification to the present.

My life outside work

I lead a full and varied personal life, enriched by family and friends and my own various pursuits within the worlds of religion, literature, art, and learning.  Like others, of course, I’m often kept busy by the more mundane tasks of daily life whereas I try to make time for myself and others – for time together at home, in town, and, when possible, the wider world, especially the wonders of my own (adoptive) state of North Carolina.

My favorite song or movie

I have many favorites.  Though not my favorite Leonard Cohen song, there is a lyric from the song “Anthem” that I (and many others) find especially resonant, very appropriate, in my view, to thinking about the human condition, suffering, and healing: “Ring the bells that still can ring, Forget your perfect offering, There is a crack, a crack in everything, That’s how the light gets in.”

If I weren’t a counselor, I’d be…

I can imagine myself as a teacher (K-12), doing what I can to impart a love of knowledge and learning, to promote the enterprise of education, to nourish and nurture growing minds and persons.  If not that, perhaps in another time and place, perhaps in vaudeville, perhaps in the theatre, an actor.

Hobbies/interests/passions

Apart from my professional work and the ongoing learning that it entails, music (listening and playing), theatre (watching and, on occasion, acting), reading, and experiencing the natural world.

Availability

Seth provides in-person counseling services only in Charlotte, North Carolina.