PROVISIONALLY LICENSED CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER & THERAPIST
Jeremy Messenger
Therapist for Life Transitions, Trauma & Reintegration
Pronouns: Him/Him
Licensure: Provisionally Licensed Clinical Social Worker
& Therapist
Location: Rhode Island
Languages: English
Accepting New Clients: Yes
Sliding Scale: Yes
Insurance: Aetna, BCBS, Medicaid, NHP, Tufts, UHC, United Health Student Health Resources
About Jeremy
Jeremy works with adolescents, young adults, middle-aged individuals, and seniors. He specializes in Life Coaching, facilitating Life Transitions, addressing Maladaptive Personality Patterns, guiding Incarceration/Reintegration, and providing support for ADHD, anxiety, aging, bipolar patterns, career coaching, and counseling. He also focuses on helping child-free individuals, children of parents with addiction, those involved in the criminal justice system, dual diagnosis, and depression. Additionally, he supports highly sensitive individuals dealing with intergenerational trauma, healing, self-esteem, and compassion.
Jeremy's identity and lived experience include being heterosexual, cisgender, white, and mixed-race, and having experienced incarceration, homelessness, and adoption. His cultural knowledge encompasses the experiences of mixed-race individuals and adoption. He serves as an educator, therapist, or coach for fellow therapists. The therapeutic modalities he employs include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Internal Family Systems (IFS), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), humanistic approaches, Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), and strength-based methods.
Jeremy is passionate about well-being and mental health. At Phoenix Rising Centers, he enhances his skills to create personalized therapeutic experiences. His strength lies in using narrative theory to assess individual needs, emphasizing the full context of each person's life and unique strengths.
He believes in the power of personal storytelling, recognizing that narratives can hold self-limiting beliefs. Through therapy, he helps clients rewrite these stories, empowering them to take control of their journeys toward well-being. This storytelling approach enables individuals to identify and reinterpret the narratives shaping their experiences.
Jeremy finds collaboration with individuals, couples, and families rewarding. He tailors his approach to their specific challenges using Solution-Focused, Strength-Based, and Client-Centered interventions. This flexibility allows him to meet each client’s unique needs effectively.
Jeremy views therapy as a sanctuary for empowerment and growth, where individuals can explore their thoughts and emotions. He looks forward to guiding you towards a brighter, fulfilling future.
Specialties
Life Coaching, Life Transitions, Maladaptive Personality Patterns
Incarceration / Reintegration, Criminal Justice System
ADHD, Anxiety, Depression, Bipolar Patterns, Dual Diagnosis
Children of Parents with Addiction, Intergenerational Trauma & Healing
Highly Sensitive Person, Self-Esteem / Worth / Compassion
Aging, Career, Coaching Career, Counseling, Child-free People
Areas of Focus
Educator
Therapist
Coach for Therapists
Modalities
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Humanistic, Solution Focused Brief (SFBT)
Strength-Based
Lived Identity
and Experience
Hetero, cis
White
Mixed-race
Incarceration
Homelessness
Why I Do This Work
“I do this work because I’ve lived through systems that tried to define me before I ever had the chance to define myself. I believe in the quiet strength it takes to survive, and the even greater courage it takes to reimagine who you are outside of survival. My path through incarceration, homelessness, and adoption shaped the way I see people, not as problems to be solved, but as stories still unfolding. Therapy, to me, is an invitation to reclaim authorship and step into a narrative that feels more true, more whole, and more your own.”
- Jeremy Messenger
My Approach in Practice
My approach draws from multiple modalities like Internal Family Systems (IFS), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to offer support that is responsive, collaborative, and empowering. I also integrate narrative theory to help you explore how your internal and external stories have shaped your beliefs, patterns, and self-perception.
Grounded in a strength-based and client-centered framework, our work together will focus on building clarity, resilience, and alignment with your values. I believe healing happens when we move at a pace that feels safe and sustainable with your agency always at the center. My role is to walk beside you to help you notice patterns, uncover meaning, and create space for transformation.
Having experienced systems like incarceration, homelessness, and adoption firsthand, I approach this work with deep empathy and a commitment to honoring your full context. Therapy with me is not about fitting you into a box. It is about co-creating a space where you can reflect, grow, and reclaim the narrative of your life on your own terms.
What Clients Often Come to Me For
Clients often reach out when they are:
Facing transitions, disruptions, or instability
Want support creating meaning and momentum in their lives.
Exploring their
personal identity
In the context of mixed heritage, adoption, incarceration, or life experiences that defy simple labels.
Struggling with difficult patterns
In relationships, self-perception, or daily functioning and want to develop new frameworks of understanding and growth.
Navigating the long-term impacts of trauma or systems involvement
Looking for space that centers dignity, choice, and a path forward.
Managing ADHD, mood shifts, or dual diagnoses
Seeking support that honors their whole story, not just a label or diagnosis.
Seeking purpose or direction
In later life, or as child-free individuals, and wanting to explore aging, legacy, and meaning outside of traditional narratives.
I aim to create a space that honors the full complexity of your life, without judgment or prescription. I walk alongside you with curiosity, clarity, and respect for your pace and inner wisdom.