Ashley Casillo LCSW, MA Child and Family Psychotherapist Serving Lower Fairfield County 7 Danbury Rd Wilton, CT 06897
I am a licensed and insured clinician with a specialization in children, adolescent, and family issues. I hold a dual master’s degree in Child Development Psychology and Clinical Social Work.
You are the expert! My goal as a therapist is not to lead you, but to walk beside you to help identify obstacles to your happiness and success. Together, we will work to explore your past experiences and future goals; fostering your natural strengths and support systems to help you reach your fullest potential.
My office is located on the Norwalk Wilton Border; conveniently located close to both Interstate 95 and Route 15. Appointments are available Monday thru Saturday from 11 to 7. Space is sometimes limited by these time restraints, but I will work with you to find a mutually agreeable meeting date and time with my earliest availability.
Services
Providing confidential individual and family services to Lower Fairfield County
Children, and even older teenagers and adults are often unable to conceptualize, let alone verbalize, their thoughts and feelings in a way that is helpful for them to communicate effectively with their environment in order to get their needs met. This can happen for a variety of reasons, and can be expressed by both internalized and externalized symptoms. A limited set of cognitive, social, self-regulatory, and/or expressive language skills, then, demand a creative, individualized approach to treatment.
Understanding how the developing human is affected by life experiences and the unique expression of their symptoms is key to devising, supporting, and implementing successful interventions.
Specializations Include:
Parent Education Developmental Disabilities School Difficulties Anxiety Mood issues Family Conflict Depression Low Self Esteem High Risk Behaviors Suicidality/Self-Injury Trauma/Grief/Loss Social Skills/Peer issues LGBTQIA Support
About
My therapeutic approach stems from the concept that our expectations for the way that people will relate to us, our responsiveness and sensitivity to others, our confidence in ourselves as people who are loveable and likeable, and our ability to trust, all grow from the kind of relationships and environments that we experience in our early lives.
One of my biggest clinical strengths, not apparent on paper, is my ability to connect with others while providing empathy and support in a non-threatening or demanding manner. I have been able to successfully build rapport with children and families who have been resistant to treatment in the past.
My personal experiences with early interventions in my family of origin, along with my educational background and clinical training experiences have given me a unique perspective on the resiliency of children and families, the delicate nature of working with sensitive topics, and the importance of early identification, action, and advocacy for families as the educational and health systems can be quite difficult to navigate in the best of circumstances.
Education
I attended Emmanuel College, Boston, where I majored in neuropsychology and obtained my B.A.
In 2013, I graduated with a dual degree in Child Development Psychology and Clinical Social Work. I obtained a Master’s of Arts from Sarah Lawrence College and a Master’s of Social Work from New York University, respectively.
My unique educational foundation has provided me with a combination of skills and theoretical knowledge of clinical social work and developmental psychology. Through the dual degree program, I completed a full year of psychology coursework in developmental theory while working in an observational fieldwork placement of typically developing, unidentified, children. Following this, I completed two years of clinical social work training with fieldwork experiences in a therapeutic special education school working with at risk children, and as an outpatient therapist for an urban non-profit organization. With this, I gained an in depth understanding of the life of a child as a complex interaction of intellectual, emotional, and social factors.
Master’s Thesis: Finding Meaning in Chaos: An Argument for the Healing Power of Play Therapy in the Treatment of ADHD
Clinical Experience
After graduating, I worked as a Child, Family, and Crisis (211) counselor at the Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut, in Stamford. While there, I carried an eclectic workload which included: conducting developmental evaluations and assessments for children under the age of 5; group, parent and family, and individual therapy for children and adolescents between the ages of 2-18; collaborating with community programs; and conducting suicide and high-risk behavior assessments and interventions.
Currently, I work for Kids in Crisis as the Teen Talk Counselor for Ridgefield High School. In this school based-setting, I provide a confidential support system for students dealing with a wide range of issues that arise in adolescence. Through this program, I consult with parents, faculty, and community stakeholders, as needed, to provide psychoeducation about mental health issues and make appropriate referrals and accommodations for students in need.
I have worked closely with programs such as the Mayor’s Youth Leadership Council (MYLC), assisting youth mental health first aid responders to foster the skills to act as peer mentors in their high schools, to help identify teenagers at risk that may otherwise go under the radar. I have been invited to give public talks and hold teenage and parent discussion groups and panels on various mental health topics relating to adolescence, in particular.
In addition, I have collaborated with the Jewish Community Center’s summer camp with the assistance of an Autism Speaks grant to develop a curriculum and lead a social skills group for developmentally disabled children who attend the camp, and require extra support to manage their emotions and behaviors throughout the day.
Rates
Psychotherapy sessions are typically held for 45 minutes, though accommodations for shorter or longer sessions can be negotiated, as needed. Standard rates apply to all meetings based on contracted insurance rates, and payment is due in full at the end of each session. Individualized payment terms will be discussed prior to your intake, and out of pocket costs will be dependent on your insurance coverage and benefits that are unique to your plan. If you prefer to pay out-of-pocket, a self-pay rate will also be discussed and agreed upon before starting treatment. The standard rate for self-pay is $125.00 per hour, but a sliding scale fee can be discussed, as needed.
Cash or checks made out to “Ashley Casillo” are acceptable forms of payment.
Additionally, I accept Venmo App and PayPal payments if you prefer to use a credit, debit, and/or Health Savings Account (HSA) card. If you would like to request a credit card payment, please let me know, and I can e-mail you an invoice where you can make your payment directly.
24 hours’ notice is required for cancellations to avoid being charged.
I am currently an ‘In Network’ Provider for: Husky, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, as well as Cigna.
I am an out of network provider for all other insurance companies. Many insurance companies offer out of network benefits which can be used to reimburse you for therapeutic services. If you would like to work with me out of network, I will provide you with an invoice, which will contain the necessary information to process your claims with your insurance company for reimbursement.
To check whether you have out of network and/or behavioral health insurance benefits, please call your insurance provider directly. It would be important to note your out of network deductible, any amount that has been used, as well as your policy’s coverage per therapy session. Here are some questions that you can ask to help you understand your behavioral health plan:
*Do I have “out of network” mental health insurance benefits? *What is my deductible? Has it been met? *How many sessions per year does my plan cover? *What is the coverage amount per therapy session? *Is a referral required from my primary care physician?