Deja Howard MSW, SISW

Deja Howard is a MSW and Supervisee in Social work. She earned her Bachelor of Social Work degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and her Master of Social Work degree from Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service. She is committed to developing her expertise in the field of death, grief, and loss to be able to help individuals of all ages begin their healthy grieving journey. Deja has a core commitment to help individuals achieve balance and validation in their life so they can feel seen and heard, empowering them to live their most authentic and genuine lives. To support clients in achieving change, Deja often pulls from the umbrella of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to address unhelpful thinking patterns and activate useful behavioral changes.

During her time as a hospice social worker, she has worked with the adult and geriatric population as well as navigated their family systems as they face a variety of obstacles and hardships including, but not limited to: depression, anticipatory grief, anxiety, caregiver stress, bereavement, and general family dynamic issues. Her counseling approach borrows from person-centered and solution-focused therapy approaches. The guiding principles to her therapeutic approach are balance and validation for clients. It’s imperative people feel seen and heard as well as receive the accountability, education, and support they need to enact meaningful change. Various interventions Deja uses can include but are not limited to: psychoeducation to teach coping skills for stress, grief, etc., cognitive restructuring for challenging unhelpful thinking patterns, and most importantly non-judgmental listening!

Deja is currently a SISW in Virginia, approved by the Board of Social Work to provide services under the supervision of a licensed professional as she completes requirements for licensure. She is under the supervision of Tricia Van Rossum, LCSW, CSOTP, Ph.D.