Steven Osterstrom, LCSW

Steven Osterstrom is an LCSW practicing in New York with 24 years of experience as a psychotherapist. He draws on practical, experience-based methods to help people facing stress, anxiety, addiction, grief, and midlife transitions. His manner is warm and interactive, aiming to make therapy a straightforward place to talk and learn new ways of coping.

Steven emphasizes the link between the stories people tell about their past and how they feel now. He uses approaches from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and mindfulness practices to help clients notice unhelpful patterns and try different responses. He often focuses on strengthening inner resources and building concrete skills for daily life.

He has taught social work graduate students for many years and has run group work in correctional settings through Alternatives to Violence Project. Those experiences informed his inclusive, nonjudgmental stance and his attention to cultural and identity issues. He values working in ways that respect diversity and reduce harm.

Sessions with Steven typically blend skill-building, reflective conversation, and mindfulness exercises. He encourages small, manageable steps and uses compassion-focused ideas to reduce shame and increase resilience. He helps people facing relationship strain, parenting challenges, career shifts, and questions of life purpose.

For people navigating midlife change, he offers steady practical guidance and support for making values-based choices. Beginning therapy with him starts with a short conversation to clarify goals and plan the first steps together.

How his approaches translate to online work

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) helps people clarify what matters to them and take small steps toward those values despite difficult thoughts or feelings. It often uses simple exercises to notice thoughts and commit to actions that match personal goals. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on spotting unhelpful thinking patterns and practicing new responses through short, practical exercises that can be done between sessions. Mindfulness Therapy teaches brief attention and breathing practices to reduce reactivity and build calm in daily life.

Choosing the right approach is part of the work together. He will discuss goals, preferences, and what feels most useful, then adjust methods as therapy progresses. The decision about which tools to use happens collaboratively, and can change as needs shift.

Session formats are not detailed in the biography, so confirm current options before booking. Many people find online therapy helps fit sessions into a busy week, allows for shorter check-ins when needed, and reduces travel time. It also makes it easier to practice skills between meetings and to bring real-life situations into conversation. Licensed professionals can adapt ACT, CBT, and mindfulness exercises effectively in remote sessions while helping clients plan manageable steps toward change.