I am Koffi Jamil Sowe, a Licensed Certified Clinical Social Worker, LCSW-C based in Maryland with over 30 years of experience as a behavioral health professional. How did I choose my profession and/or how my profession chose me: I was raised in southern Virginia during the 1960s & 1970s in a large low-income working class African American family of 12. My parents had 5 boys & 5 girls and I am the 7th of the 10 children & 4th boy. In 1965 our parents bought their 1st house and we moved from “the projects”(public housing) to become “blockbusters”- the 1st African-American family to move into the White middle class neighborhood. When I was 14 my father suddenly died after his 8th heart attack at the young age of 52. Our mother didn’t remarry; thus I spent part of my adolescent & young adult years in a single parent multi- generational household (which included maternal grandmother, maternal great uncle & paternal uncle) . As teenagers & young adults we all worked to help support the family and pay for our private/Catholic school & college education. After the death of my father I realized “I am not going to live forever” and asked myself “what are you going to do with your life?” As a young child & teenager I was exposed to & got to know children and families of diverse backgrounds including race, religion, ethnicity, profession, life experiences & social economic status. This was made possible as a result of my elementary & high school settings & my participation in school & community sports. As a result of my early exposure to diversity I learned & realized that families, couples and individuals of all diverse backgrounds are susceptible to problems/conflicts/struggles & challenges. Between my late teens and early twenties I decided that helping people, as a therapist, would be what I’ll do with my life. For over 35 years I’ve served families, couples, adults, teenagers and children through public/government and private (for profit and nonprofit) & faith-based human service agencies and organizations. I’ve provided behavioral health clinical services in residential settings, inpatient & outpatient settings, community & home based settings in addition to telehealth and as an independent private practice clinician. I’ve successfully established positive therapeutic working relationships while serving clientele from diverse backgrounds including race, religion, ethnicity, profession, life experiences & social economic status. My clients & I worked together to achieve clients’ successful progress thru their struggles & challenges with depression, stress & anxiety, parenting, family & relationship conflicts, various addictions (alcohol, drugs, food pornography, sex, exercise, relationships), trauma & abuse, attention/focus issues, career/work issues and grief & loss. Listening, respect, compassion, trustworthiness and non-judgemental & openness are the necessary ingredients in the foundation of each of my therapeutic/clinical relationships which results in understanding & positive satisfied outcomes for my clientele. I firmly believe each of us is unique with our own strengths, struggles, challenges and perspectives. No one knows you better than you; thus you are the expert on you. Our ability to effectively navigate & function in life decreases when our life experiences, struggles & challenges reach the point of blinding or distorting our strengths, thinking, emotions & perspectives; thus this is when we can benefit most from professional assistance, guidance & support. I utilize an eclectic clinical approach that is individualized & guided by what is beneficial & tailored to each client’s strengths, needs, struggles, challenges & situations with input from the client seeking and working towards effective management of their life struggles & challenges. My clients & I draw from the tenets of Cognitive Behavioral, Psychodynamic, Solution Focused, Client-Centered, Narrative, Mindfulness, Trauma-Focused, Somatic & Strength Based therapies in addition to Motivational Interviewing to facilitate each client’s goals achievement. The therapeutic process & work is not limited to weekly sessions with the therapist. This process & work is part of a client’s daily life; thus I give assignments to work on between scheduled sessions. Thank you for being a member of Betterhelp and taking the time to read about who I am & how I work as a behavioral health clinician. This is evidence that you have taken the first step & are in the process of the 2nd step of a three step positive personal life enhancement journey. My first experience of this type of journey was almost 30 years ago. I personally understand & am familiar with the feelings & emotional experiences of 1) acknowledging & accepting when professional assistance is needed & can be beneficial; 2) the process of seeking & finding a good therapist match; and 3) engaging in the therapeutic process, as the patient/client, seeking positive treatment progress & outcomes and positive personal and emotional growth & development. I am a firm believer in “you can’t effectively help others if you don’t take care of yourself and get assistance & help for yourself when needed”. This has continued, throughout my career, to be part of my belief & philosophy as a behavioral health clinician. I look forward to working together with you to facilitate positive behavioral, emotional & life changes & achievement of the goals you set for yourself.
