Jeff, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, provides telehealth counseling for Bloom Behavioral Health Partners. He earned his MSW from the University of Michigan, which is also where his interest in therapy was born during his undergraduate years, majoring in Speech and Drama.

His early professional experiences included working with inmates in a prison for three years, where he first used what later became one of his favorite approaches to therapy: humor. “I joked around with the inmates and found it was the best approach for many of them,” he says, adding, “I even snuck in a copy of ‘Airplane!’ as contraband!” Humor therapy has proven effective for clients on the outside as well. “I use humor in my sessions to take the focus off the negative,” he says.

In practice for more than 50 years, Jeff specializes in helping people with substance abuse disorders and their families. He also provides couples counseling and general mental health therapy. 

In addition to humor therapy, Jeff also employs Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, which operates under the belief that our behavior is controlled by our thoughts, an approach he finds practical and relatable; and Positive Psychology. He believes strongly in continuing education and regularly reads up on the latest information about the ever-changing world of therapy.