Online Individual Therapy for Women and LGBTQIA+ Adults in California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Texas & Utah
Shylah Ridgway, LCSW, LICSW (she/her)
You have probably been called too much. Too sensitive, too intense, too needy, too honest, take your pick, usually by someone who found it easier when you were smaller. I am less interested in whether they were right, and more interested in where it started and whether it is still running your life.
Right now, you probably feel like:
You’re never good enough or have never done enough
It’s impossible to check all the boxes
“Keeping your shit together” is unsustainable
You want to do things, improve things, be things, and learn things, but you lack the motivation or literal ability to do so
People are your best friend, but you’re never anyone else’s best friend
You have strained family relationships, specifically with your mom, feeling parentified as a child, or being no contact
You keep getting into the same relationship but with a different person over and over to fix the initial pain
You’re unable to cope with any negative input from others
You have poor boundaries or codependent patterns
You can gauge someone’s feelings just by being around them and are always aware of how other people are feeling, without it being reciprocated
You’re just too much
Sound familiar? If it does, I have a feeling we’ll be a good fit.
We are so often socialized to fit ourselves into roles and boxes that put other people first. But finding a true sense of belonging and identity is something different altogether. Belonging means being able to show up exactly as you are, with every piece of your identity being accepted and valued. You deserve that belonging.
So if you're looking for a therapist who does things a little differently, like you, you're in the right place.
Why the Secretary Bird
Every bird here picked its person. The Secretary Bird picked me.
Secretary Birds look like dinosaurs with eyelashes and a crown, and they are not trying to soften that for anybody. They stomp the shit out of venomous snakes for a living, and they have a weird, unique call you do not forget. My laugh is somewhere between a witch and a hyena, so the weird call felt personally accurate.
It fit the rest of me too. Direct, protective, and not here for performance or fake therapy energy.
I am not built to nod along for fifty minutes while everything stays comfortable. If there is a pattern, I point it out. If there is an assumption you have never questioned, I ask about it. If you are lying to yourself, I usually catch it before you do. Kindly. But I catch it.
If something needs named, we name it. If something needs challenged, we challenge it. If something needs stomped, we stomp it together.
Before You Reach Out
I am not taking new therapy clients right now.
My waitlist is full too, so I cannot add you there either. I would rather tell you that plainly than have you fill out a form and sit around waiting on a no.
Here is the good news. The rest of the flock at Ala Therapy Collective is open and taking new clients, and there is a real chance one of them is a better fit for you than I would be anyway. Start there.
Still Open
I do still take two things on personally:
- Forensic immigration evaluations, including weekend availability.
- Clinical supervision for social workers working toward independent licensure.
If either of those is why you are here, reach out and we will get started.
How I See It
I am not that interested in what is wrong with you.
People are incredibly good at adapting. Sometimes so good at it that they build an entire personality around surviving an environment that does not exist anymore, and then spend years wondering why they feel like a stranger in their own life.
So I do not spend much time on what is wrong with you. I spend a lot more time figuring out why something that looks irrational today made complete sense at some earlier point, back when it was keeping you safe. Almost everything people hate about themselves started out as a solution that worked.
I also do not take normal at face value. A lot of what people are handed as just the way things are was built that way, and it is worth asking who it was built for. Half the time the problem was never the person. It was the setup.
That shift changes everything. Once something finally makes sense, you can stop treating it like a character flaw and start deciding whether it still earns its place. That is the actual work, and it is what every clinician at Ala Therapy Collective is built around.
From Bird's the Word
Writing on immigration evaluations
Plain-language walkthroughs of the evaluation process, from the person who writes the reports.
What an Immigration Evaluation Actually Is (and What It Is Not)
It is not a test you can fail, and it is not an interrogation. A plain-language walkthrough of what an immigration evaluation actually is.
Read the post
My Areas of Focus:
- ADHD in Women
- Imposter Syndrome
- Codependency and Boundaries
- LGBTQIA+ Affirming Therapy
- Anxiety and Depression
- Life Transitions
- Forensic Immigration Evaluations
- LCSW Supervision
The Types of Therapy I Use:
- Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Trauma-Focused CBT
- Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)
- Person-Centered Therapy
- Strength-Based Therapy
- Culturally Sensitive Practice
- Certified Daring Way Facilitator (Brené Brown)
My Professional Qualifications:
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in California
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Hawaii
- Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) in Massachusetts
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Oklahoma
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Texas
- Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Utah
- Master of Social Work, Anne and Henry Zarrow School of Social Work, University of Oklahoma, 2013
- Trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy, EMDR Institute
- Trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Trauma-Focused CBT
- Immigration Certificate Program, Forensic Social Work Alliance (FSWA)
- Certified in Mastering Immigration Evaluations, Georgia King LCSW
- Certified Daring Way Facilitator, Brené Brown
- Licensed to provide LCSW supervision for MSW graduates in Oklahoma
Are you searching for the TLDR version of what I offer? Look no further!
Here are some good old fashioned bulleted lists to help you find the important info:
Insurance & Billing
Insurance verified. Stress relieved.
We'll handle your insurance verification and let you know what we find.
Most folks only have to worry about their co-pay! Here are the providers I accept:
- 90 Degree Benefits
- Aetna
- Ambetter
- BlueCross and BlueShield (BCBS)
- FEP BlueCross and BlueShield
- Boon-Chapman
- Carelon Behavioral Health
- Cigna and Evernorth
- Dean Health Plan
- Government Employees Health Association (GEHA)
- Harvard Pilgrim
- Healthcare Highways (HCH Plus & Sync)
- HealthChoice
- Humana Military (TriCare East)
- Magellan
- Medica (Harmony)
- Medicare
- Mending (Taro Health)
- Meritain Health
- Optum
- Oscar Health
- Oxford
- TriWest
- Tufts
- United Medical Resources (UMR)
- UnitedHealthcare UHC | UBH
- WebTPA
If you are interested in LCSW Supervision, my supervision rates are $75.00 per hour.
From the Founder
I built this to be the opposite of performative.
There is a kind of therapy that runs on vague affirmations and clinicians pretending to know things they do not. I did not want to build any more of that.
So Ala Therapy Collective is a collective of people who actually know what they are doing, who care enough to keep learning, and who are not afraid to admit when they do not know something. I would trust every one of them with someone I love.
Whether you end up with someone here or with a therapist somewhere else entirely, I hope you find that.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions About Working With Shylah
Are you accepting new therapy clients?
Not right now. My practice is full and my therapy waitlist is closed. If you are looking for a therapist, the rest of the flock at Ala Therapy Collective is accepting new clients, and there is a good chance one of them is a strong fit for you.
Do you offer forensic immigration evaluations?
Yes. Forensic immigration evaluations are one of the two things I still take on personally. I provide them by telehealth across all six states where I am licensed, Oklahoma, California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Texas, and Utah, with weekend availability.
What types of immigration evaluations do you provide?
I provide psychological evaluations for asylum, hardship and cancellation of removal, T-visa, U-visa, and VAWA cases.
Do you provide clinical supervision for social workers?
Yes. I provide LCSW supervision for MSW graduates working toward independent licensure in Oklahoma. My supervision rate is $75 per hour.
What states are you licensed in?
I am licensed in Oklahoma, California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Texas, and Utah.
I want to work with Ala Therapy Collective but not with you. Can you help me find the right therapist?
Absolutely. That is what the rest of the flock is here for. You can browse the clinicians who are accepting new clients and find the one who fits.
Can attorneys refer clients to you for immigration evaluations?
Yes. I work with attorneys on immigration evaluations and welcome referrals. You can find details on the attorney referrals page.