Minding The Moments - Live Your Best Life Right Here, Right Now!

“Live Your Best Life Now, Where You Are, In The Moment” – Melissa Kramer

MindfulNest Therapy LLC Opens in Red Bank, New Jersey

Red Bank, New Jersey (Monmouth County) – A new psychotherapy practice & counseling center has opened in Red Bank, New Jersey. MindfulNest Therapy LLC, owned by Melissa Kramer, LCSW, offers comprehensive mental health services including Adult Individual Therapy, Couples & Marital Therapy, Family Therapy, and Child/Adolescent Therapy. The practice provides assistance with issues including depression, anxiety, grief, stress, life transitions & sexuality for individual adults, couples, children and entire families. Ms. Kramer specializes in counseling children & adolescents with anxiety and behavioral problems in addition to couples and families who are experiencing challenges due to issues and circumstances such as divorce, death, parenting, lifestyle changes & transitions, anxiety & stress, health, or a variety of other situations. Office hours are by appointment. For those with busy schedules or not in close proximity to Red Bank, telephone/video counseling is available. The office is located at 115 Maple Avenue, Suite 201, Red Bank, New Jersey 07701. The telephone number is (732) 443-0331. Melissa Kramer can also be reached by email at info@mindfulnesttherapy.com. The website address is www.mindfulnesttherapy.com.

About Melissa Kramer, LCSW

Ms. Kramer earned her Bachelor of Social Work Degree (BSW) at Stockton University with a concentration in child welfare, and her Master of Social Work Degree (MSW) at New York University. Licensed in both New Jersey & New York, she completed specialized training through the New Jersey Department of Children & Families and the New Jersey Child Welfare Training Academy in addition to an internship in adult mental health treatment and additional training in diagnostic evaluation.

Removing Stigma – The MindfulNest Mission

Melissa has always had a deep desire to help and connect with others in an impactful way and to offer solutions for positive change. But more importantly, she has a greater mission to remove the stigma from the concept of mental health counseling and to those who seek therapy. “Mental health is about living your best life, about choosing happiness, and about living in the moment and finding joy. This is possible even during difficult times. I envision a day when the dialogue about therapy changes. We invest easily in other areas of our lives. We join gyms to tone our bodies, make doctor’s appointments to attend to our physical health, hire coaches to succeed in business, go to accountants for financial issues, seek spiritual fulfillment at houses of worship, but mental health seems to be missing from the equation,” stated Melissa. She explained that recent statistics show that approximately 20% of the population has a mental disorder, but only 40% of those people are getting treated. “That is a huge gap, and I want to entirely remove the stigma and be a bridge to those who seek treatment.”

Commenting on her role and what she provides to clients, Melissa was quick to emphasize that her office is a safe space. She understands that making the initial decision to pursue treatment is a big decision and one in which people can feel vulnerable. “It is not always easy to make that call or walk through the door, but I strive to make people comfortable. Therapy is the one place you can go to let down your guard, to push the walls down, and to be who you are with no fear of judgement or criticism,” she noted. Melissa views her role as that of a trusted confidante, an advocate, ally, facilitator, coach, mentor and advisor, giving encouragement and concentrating on her clients’ strengths and positive attributes. She added, “Keep in mind that nobody gets out of this life unscathed. We all experience pain, loss and disappointments as well as joy and success. A therapist can really help with emotional balance when someone feels they are drowning in despair or simply need some help in talking through what is happening.”

Dispelling The Myths

People can seek therapy for any number of reasons, including anxiety or depression that is situational in nature. “Life changes, people change, and circumstances change…. sometimes people just want a place where they can find answers and reassurance that what they are experiencing is not unusual,” stated Melissa. She cites the atmosphere in which we live and the expectations that modern society sometimes forces upon us. “While we have the best technology in the world at our fingertips designed to keep us connected, it seems that people are feeling more disconnected than ever now and are questioning their lives.” It is precisely in this space, Melissa noted, that therapy can really help someone live his or her best life, and with the guidance of a therapist, remove roadblocks and move forward in meeting goals.

Our Families & Children

Melissa has a strong love for children and has specialized training in treating & diagnosing them. Her practice seeks to provide a comforting and trusting environment in which children can discuss their feelings without fear of judgement, reproach, or ridicule. Melissa, however, is concerned about the symptoms of anxiety that she observes even in young children and advises that it should not be ignored. “Bullying, school shootings, social pressure……like adults, children also feel anxious and might not know where to turn, so we must give them the tools they need to cope,” Melissa cautioned. If not taught how to regulate feelings of anxiety, Melissa explained that they can begin to isolate themselves, or worse, begin to act out. That causes a chain reaction which usually means the focus becomes the bad behavior and not the cause or root of what is actually driving the bad behavior. Again, this is where therapy can really help in providing coping tools. “Life gives us disappointments and losses as well as successes. We need to be able to handle success as well as failure and to also teach our children how to manage the failures and losses while moving through life,” Melissa stated. Teaching these coping skills and self-regulation tools to our youth, in Melissa’s view, is a direct path to creating well-adjusted, happy, and successful adults who are mindful of their mental health.

Minding Moments = Mindfulness = MindfulNest

For someone who carries her clients’ well-being in her heart long after a therapy session is over and whose first priority is to provide a comforting, safe, and nurturing environment, Melissa has a favorite phrase which she recites over and over again, like a mantra, “Mind the moments, practice mindfulness.” The business name, MindfulNest, is a pleasant play on words that reminds people to be mindful of the magical moments in life as they are on the path to meeting their goals. Really, this is a call to be happy right now, at this very moment, despite challenges, unmet goals, upsetting situations, or whatever else has caused a problem. Melissa is adamant in her view that seeking help should be a priority and viewed as a strength, not a weakness. “There is no shame in asking for help and making your mental health a priority as you would other areas of your life. Be present, be focused, appreciate the here and now as you take steps toward your goals, and most importantly, choose happiness now,” Melissa concluded.

Photos: Melissa Kramer, LCSW and her office at MindfulNest Therapy