WELCOME 

The Jewish Therapist Collective is a community of clinicians with a heart for advocacy, change and community. With over 3,500 members across platforms, our community has been officially building for over a year and continues to grow. As far as we know, we’re the largest trans-denominational, international Jewish Therapist association in existence. While most of us are in the United States, our membership spans six continents. We are a large, inclusive tent that welcomes Jewish therapists from all backgrounds and identities and are affirmatively inclusive across degrees of observance, heritage, sexuality and gender, political identity, race and ethnicity, and, of course, therapeutic orientation.

Therapy seekers 

Land here in search of a Jewish therapist? Look no further! Click the button below to browse our new but growing directory. And as always, if we don’t have that just right fit listed in your area yet, send us your specs here! You’ll want to include location, age, specialty, and anything else that might be helpful… minding that this is regular email and not a clinical office, so please mind your privacy!

OUR MISSION

The mission of The Jewish Therapist Collective is to be a voice and vehicle of professional advocacy for Jewish therapists and therapy seekers within our community, within our professions, and in the public discourse.

THE PURPOSE

jewish therapists unite and advocate against antisemitism

HOW DID THIS ALL START?

Well, the field of psychotherapy has been informed by the wisdom, insight, compassion, creativity, and curiosity of Jewish thinkers since its inception. Over the decades, our field has changed, grown and branched out. Within the community of professionals, there are medical doctors and nurses, psychologists, counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, and affiliated professionals.

In recent years, there has been a beautiful and needed rallying cry for increased awareness and support for diverse communities and their unique needs. We’ve been there through all of it, cheering on and joining in with efforts wherever we could. Many of us are members of multiple demographics who’ve been rising up in advocacy in recent years, and even more are passionate allies for healing the world, which we call Tikkun Olam.

advocacy for jews - history of the collectiveTo a lesser extent, we’ve advocated for our own community’s needs: cultural competence, allyship and visibility, community, support around community-specific trauma and generational trauma, etc. In 2020, a gentile (non-Jewish) therapist asked, in a resource-sharing group for therapists, for some resources and support in her work with a Jewish client. We rejoiced at her outreach and rallied in support, but unfortunately, we experienced a now-tired refrain: “not you, not now, not here.” At a critical point, within the therapist community, we were abruptly awakened to the writing that’s been on the wall for quite some time: the assertion that there’s not space for Jewish identity or solidarity against antisemitism in the general psychotherapy community.

We needed a space: for advocacy, for support in coping with overt and covert antisemitism in our professional community and beyond, to find and offer referrals who were safe and competent to support Jewish clients, and to celebrate our heritage and community safely. We created a space, first on Facebook and with occasional connection through zoom, and laid the groundwork for bigger efforts and deeper community. We navigated growing pains and built the space and structure for passionate, diverse opinions. We tended the wounds of antisemitism and unpacked deeper intra-community struggles. And we dutifully listened to community and took notes the avenues through which change might come.

Get Involved

Remember that story of Stone Soup? Imagine this amazing soup if you don’t just tell us what to add, but also offer a carrot, onion, or some pepper! This can mean different things for different people: financial support, your time and labor, access to your resources or platform, etc. If you’re not sure how to help, let’s chat. Of course, please feel free to connect even if you can’t give of your time or resources just yet, too.

support

Your support helps cover startup, overhead, and admin costs. This includes website and tech services, upcoming legal fees to draft non-profit documents, and other expenses. We appreciate you!!! 

Buy us a coffee! Please and thank you!!

share

Your feedback, ideas, comments, and critiques mean the world to us! Please submit any feedback or requests for information using this simple web contact form!

connect on social

Join our Private Facebook Group for therapists just like yourself – all seeking support and ways to advocate for Jewish clients within the mental health arena. The group is appropriately titled The Jewish Therapist Collective: Professional Advocacy & Community Support” so you can’t miss it. We look forward to welcoming you into this active community!

SIGNUP FOR UPDATES

As the collective gains momentum, we will have more and more to report and are looking forward to sharing great news with you!

Newsletter Form (#3)