Stephen Toriello, LCSW/LICSW

Mindfulness-based Somatic IFS therapy

Hi, I’m Stephen.

I’m guessing you’re here because you could use some support. Maybe you want to feel more emotionally grounded, improve your relationships, or discover more peace and contentment. I offer a mindfulness-based, somatic (embodiment-focused) approach to Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy. Our work together can help you get to know yourself more deeply, explore what’s making you feel stuck, and unburden what’s weighing you down.

I work with individuals 18+ who live in California or Massachusetts over telehealth or in-person in Florence, MA.

Please reach out for a free 15-minute consultation: connect@stephentoriello.com 

My Approach to Therapy

First and foremost, I value warm-heartedness, open-mindedness, and being authentically human together. Research shows that a safe, secure therapeutic relationship is the most important factor in determining positive therapy outcomes. I aim to be attuned to your needs, encourage feedback, and adapt my approach so that you get the most out of therapy. I am here to hold space for the parts of you that you might be afraid to show, to welcome all of what you bring to therapy without judgment, and to gently and compassionately move with you into challenging places so you can grow and change in the ways you want. 

  • IFS is about cultivating harmonious relationships among all parts of ourselves (our internal family, so to speak). IFS guides us toward loving all of who we are, trusting ourselves, releasing emotional burdens, healing traumas, and shifting patterns of behavior that are not serving us. This is done by accessing healing qualities that are already within us, such as compassion and curiosity, and through radical acceptance and the firm acknowledgement that there are no bad parts of you. IFS embraces the fact that we contain multitudes and celebrates what all of what our sub-personalities have to offer, especially once they have been unburdened and released into their naturally valuable states.

  • The word "somatic" refers to the body. Most styles of “talk therapy” consist of an intellectual dialogue between the therapist and client, in which they analyze, dissect, and cognitively reframe problems in the client’s life. Somatic IFS does not dismiss the intellectual parts of ourselves, but encourages us to let awareness settle into the body, befriend our nervous systems, and listen and give expression to the non-cognitive parts of ourselves that tend to be less privileged in our modern world. This allows us to go deeper in therapy and discover and heal the root causes of many surface-level mental health issues that can only be addressed from the “bottom-up” rather than the “top-down.”

  • Mindfulness practice helps us to release ourselves from the grip of thought and automatic behavior, to relax into natural awareness. Mindfulness does not need to be difficult and effortful – the basis of mindfulness is awareness, and you are already aware without even trying. The problem is just that awareness tends to be caught up in the cognitive realm. The more we trust what is already here within us, the more we can access healing qualities that are fundamental to who we are on a deeper level - what IFS calls the Self. We can then turn our awareness toward all parts of ourselves and others with compassion, clarity, and confidence.

    Mindfulness has roots in Asian religions, particularly Buddhism, which is a spiritual practice that has had a great influence on me. For any meditation nerds out there, I am particularly inspired by the styles of practice that emphasize simple, effortless, uncontrived awareness, such as Dzogchen and Shikantaza. I also deeply value Shamatha and Vipassana practices, and I integrate all of these into the therapy work.

    Despite its origins, mindfulness is not tied to any particular religion, and the benefits are supported by scientific research. I enjoy working with people from different faiths, spiritual backgrounds, as well as more secular / scientific worldviews.

My specialties include:

  • Trauma

  • Depression

  • Anxiety

  • Relationship issues

  • Shame

  • Low self-esteem

  • Grief

  • Spirituality

  • Life transitions

  • Psychedelic harm reduction and integration

About me

I am a clinical social worker, but along the way, I have also been a meditation teacher, a carpenter, a gardener/farmer, a musician.

My therapy practice is enriched by my spiritual practice, having spent many hours in silent retreat, living at Buddhist centers in the US and Asia, and teaching meditation and yoga at universities and workplaces.

My frame of reference is limited by my social location as an able-bodied, white, cis-gendered, heterosexual, male, American citizen. I try to maintain awareness of this, to engage my clients with humility, respect, and the recognition that you are the true “expert” on your own experience.

I’ve lived my life in cities, on farms, and in wild areas. My journey has taken me from Brooklyn to Tibetan refugee communities in India and Nepal, farms in Vermont, the Northern Cheyenne reservation in Montana, Zen centers in California and the Pacific Northwest. And now I live with my wife in western Massachusetts, where we enjoy spending time in nature, going for walks with friends, and dancing around the kitchen.

    • California Licensed Clinical Social Worker 122384

    • Massachusetts Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker 128237

    • Master of Social Work, Smith School for Social Work, 2021

    • BA in Buddhist Studies, minor in Jazz Performance, The New School, 2012

    • Somatic IFS Professional Certification

    • IFS Institute Certified IFS Therapist

    • The Interdependence Project Meditation Teacher Training

Fees & Insurance

I am in-network with many Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance plans.

If you will be paying out-of-pocket for therapy, our first session will be $180 and each subsequent 50-minute session will be $150.

I reserve a limited number of reduced fee slots for clients who cannot afford the full fee. Please reach out to inquire about availability.

If you have out-of-network insurance benefits, I can provide superbills for you to submit to your insurance company.

Notice: Your Right to a Good Faith Estimate

Notice of Privacy Practices