Feature Series: A Conversation with Fern Cohen

It’s hard to encompass everything we are as therapists into a few-paragraph bio statement. If you’re hoping to learn more about the diverse group of people behind the Therapy Collective, you’ve come to the right place. This post is the first in a series of interviews with Therapy Collective clinicians about their backgrounds, passions, and clinical interests. 

Our first conversation is with Fern Cohen, an LMSW, Mom of three, and fellow animal lover. She began our conversation pre-recording by sharing about her new puppy, who I can only assume spent our interview playing with a squeaky toy after I noticed some background noise during transcribing. 

Interview by, Carley Foster LCPC

Carley: Thank you again for agreeing to do this with me. You’ve already told me about your puppy, but for the purposes of this interview, is there anything you want to tell the world about Casper?

Fern: I love him so much. [Laughs] No, and I have two cats also that I love…I would love for Casper to get to the point where I could bring him to the office, but that’s a work in progress.

Carley: I hear you—the therapy dog training process is actually quite a thing.

Fern: [Laughs] He doesn’t seem to have the natural inclination.

Carley: Actually, related to that: I know for me, my dog has been a big part of my own therapeutic journey, and I wonder if there has been an important person or a mentor for you along the way who has made a difference for you in your career, your life, the way you practice…? 

Fern: It’s really Jennifer [Wilson.] Yeah, I graduated from social work school in 1991 and I did a program called the Baltimore Institute of Jewish Communal Service. It’s now a part of Towson State University, and you get two Master’s in two years. So, it was a Master’s in Jewish Studies and a Master’s in Social Work. I started working full time, I got married, I had three kids, and my middle son has Autism, so I didn’t work for a lot of years. You know, I worked part time, taught Hebrew school and things like that, did substitute teaching, but I didn’t work full time. Then, the pandemic came along and my whole family was stuck in the house together, and I was like “Well, it’s sort of now or never.” I’m 56, so it’s now or never. So, I called Jennifer, and I was nervous, and she was so encouraging, and really helped me make it all come together.

Carley: That’s amazing—are you okay if I post that you’re 56 in the transcript?

Fern: It’s fine, it’s fine. It’s very funny when you post things on the [Therapist Network] Facebook group, and they’re like, “looking for someone who’s seasoned,” and I’m like, “Well, I’m seasoned in the sense of being older, but I’m not seasoned in the sense of clinical experience”…what Jennifer helped me realize was, since my population, my niche, is working with adults with Autism, the experience I had with my son, raising him, being involved and doing volunteer work, his friends and all of that, I guess you could say I have real-life experience.

Carley: Absolutely! Was your son who inspired you to pursue that specialization?

Fern: Yes. My middle son is very inspiring. He is autistic and has epilepsy. He works really hard. He just graduated from high school last year and is already living independently. I’m so proud of him and of my children. It’s all about helping to support our children as they figure out who they want to be and how they want to live their lives. 

Carley: What’s the process like for becoming a Certified Autism Specialist? I haven’t met too many of them.

Fern: I completed a course of study and an examination through IBCEES, the International Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards. Over the years, I’ve just taken a ton of workshops and volunteered and worked with my son. And he’s 20 now, so I just had to figure out the whole SSI/DDA thing. I feel like I can be helpful to parents, helping them maneuver their way through that. We had to deal with—he was pulled out of public school and put into a non-public Special Ed school…then he went to a wilderness program and then he went to a boarding school, so it’s like we’ve been through all of those experiences. I can kind of help parents through that. There’s also an organization called AANE, Asperger/Autism Network…they do lots of workshops and trainings…I’m doing one in Boston this summer to help me learn more about working with neurodiverse couples, where one or both [partners] is on the Spectrum. So yeah, it’s been very interesting.

Carley: That sounds like a great resource.

Fern: And I think a lot of people, while they were home for the pandemic, were interested in addressing some of their issues and questions and concerns, mental health needs…I think there’s a waiting list to get evaluated, basically, because a lot of challenges became more apparent during the pandemic. And everything moved online, so it was easier to do the assessments..there’s a lot of people out there who believe they are Autistic or are waiting to get diagnosed or are diagnosed, so there’s definitely a need.

Carley: Yes, there’s a huge need, and if a person were to want to start on that process, where would they go? What could they expect?

Fern: Well, it depends why they’re doing it. If they’re doing it for their own knowledge, if they’re doing it for their accommodations for a job, accommodations for college, accommodations for school, it depends. If they are children, I usually recommend Mt. Washington Pediatrics or Kennedy Krieger, but there are other places that do neurobehavioral assessments for children and adults. It’s just really hard to get in right now, there’s pretty much a waiting list everywhere. A number of places, particularly for adults, don’t take insurance. That’s one of the challenging things for folks, so it takes a lot of patience.

Carley: What do you think are some of the benefits to working with a therapist as a neurodivergent person? What could that be helpful with?

Fern: I think learning to accept your challenges and see your strengths, and learn to really focus on your talents and actualize your potential. I mostly use CBT, and, you know, it’s really learning to affirm yourself and focus on the positives, and figure out what your goals are and how to work towards them…a lot of my clients also really want to make friends, they just have some challenges figuring out how to do that. Particularly during the pandemic, it was really hard. Although, during the pandemic, some people were able to make virtual friends.

Carley: So, you work with individuals and families, primarily?

Fern: And couples.

Carley: Oh, and couples—I missed that. Have you ever done a group? I’m just thinking about how, like, part of learning how to make friends is getting access to people you could be friends with.

Fern: I’ve actually been talking to Jennifer about that. But, we haven’t made it happen yet. I have so much going on right now, it’s hard to think of one more thing, but I would like to have that happen in the future…I’m doing the supervision as well, I’m trying to get my LC and have to take the test. So, you know, there’s a lot to do, but spring break is coming. 

Carley: So, Fern, I think we’re coming to the end of our time here, but I wonder if there’s anything that you would want to say to wrap up the interview. What would be important for people to know about you, or your practice, or…anything?

Fern: I feel like I’m learning something new every day. And that’s really amazing. And I learn the most from my clients and their families. And, it’s wonderful, it’s really a privilege that they let me into their lives. Yeah.

Carley: You’re like a sponge, you’re just absorbing everything right now.

Fern: I’m trying! I’m trying with my 56-year-old brain.

Carley: Well, honestly, I think that’s one of the great benefits to working with a therapist who’s sort of at their first level of credentialing—you still have a lot of interest and enthusiasm in the field. Not to say other people don’t, but everything is new and fresh and you’re open and willing to learn.

Fern: And I think the pandemic, it just brought forth so many issues for people. It was actually interesting to see how a lot of my neurodiverse clients really excelled during the pandemic because one of the big issues is communication and social interaction and for some introverts, it was easier…the hard part is really now, when people have to go back to work and get back out there. [People ask themselves] “Do I wear a mask, do I not wear a mask,” not having interacted with another person in two years and having to do that again.

Carley: Right, in a way we’re all learning right now, or relearning.

Fern: Right. So I’m in the office on Sundays in person and the rest of the days I do telehealth therapy.

Carley: Oh, okay, that’s great to know. Your schedule includes weekends?

Fern: I work on Sundays, but spend the Sabbath relaxing with family and friends. Being Jewish has always been a big part of my life. I have a Jewish Studies background, I’ve worked for synagogues and Hebrew schools and Jewish youth groups and JCCs, so I have that background to work with folks…being part of the Jewish community is a piece to their therapeutic process. And my 23 year old son is in Israel studying to be a rabbi.

Carley: That’s amazing—congratulations!

Fern: Thanks…So, that’s the story. 

If you would like to learn more about Fern or any of our other clinicians, you can meet our team or request an appointment to get started.