Dara Damico , LCSW

Dara Damico is a licensed clinical social worker in New York with 26 years of practice. She focuses on helping people facing stress, anxiety, depression, addiction, trauma, and issues related to identity and intimacy. Dara centers care on each person’s strengths and practical needs.

She keeps sessions straightforward and goal oriented. People learn skills to manage panic, mood swings, compulsions, and sleep problems. She also helps with career stress, caregiver strain, and questions around identity or gender dysphoria.

Dara uses an approach that listens first and then works with clients to set clear steps. That may include changing unhelpful thoughts, building emotional regulation skills, and practicing mindfulness. Therapy is collaborative and paced to fit what the person needs right now.

Her background includes long-term clinical work with trauma, addictions, and mood disorders. She brings practical strategies for coping with life changes, burnout, and compassion fatigue. She also supports people dealing with obsessive or compulsive behaviors and panic attacks.

Sessions address everyday problems as well as deeper patterns like attachment, abandonment, and body image concerns. Dara helps people develop routines and coping tools they can use between sessions. The focus is on real change that fits a person’s life.

People meet with her to work on recovery from substance use, to reduce anxiety, or to strengthen relationships with themselves and others. Conversations are direct, respectful, and aimed at useful outcomes.

Approach and online options for therapy

Client-centered therapy focuses on listening and building on a person's strengths. It is about creating a space where someone can talk through what matters most and then choose goals that feel right for them.

Cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT, looks at patterns of thought and behavior that keep problems going. It teaches specific strategies to change thinking traps and build new habits, which can help with anxiety, depression, and obsessive behaviors.

Dialectical behavior therapy, DBT, offers concrete skills for managing intense emotions and improving relationships. It includes techniques for distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and better interpersonal communication.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will talk with each person about goals, preferences, and what feels most useful. Together they decide which methods to try and adjust the plan as needed.

Online therapy with Dara uses video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging to fit different needs. Video is useful for in-depth conversations and watching nonverbal cues. Phone sessions can be easier when bandwidth is limited or for a simpler check-in. Live chat or text messages work well for brief updates, coaching-style support, or when typing feels easier than speaking. These options make it simpler to fit therapy into a busy life and maintain momentum between sessions.