Derek Bakay, LMHC

Derek Bakay is a licensed mental health counselor (LMHC) in New York with 15 years of clinical experience. He focuses on practical support for stress, anxiety, depression, career concerns, and coping with life changes. Derek centers sessions on the person in front of him and aims for a respectful, nonjudgmental tone.

His style is warm and interactive. He mixes client-centered listening with cognitive-behavioral and solution-focused tools. Sessions emphasize clear goals, step-by-step strategies, and the client’s own strengths.

Derek has worked across clinical settings and brings that breadth to how he frames problems and solutions. He helps people adjust to disability, manage caregiver strain, and navigate midlife or career transitions. He also addresses relationship topics such as communication, intimacy-related concerns, blended family dynamics, and parenting stress.

In practice he breaks concerns into workable steps. That might mean trying small behavior changes, testing new ways to talk with a partner, or building routines for mood and pain management. He also supports people exploring life purpose, fatherhood issues, and challenges tied to aging or chronic illness.

Clients can expect a collaborative process that treats them as the expert in their own story. Derek works to tailor conversations and plans to each person’s goals, pace, and practical needs.

How these approaches shape online care

Client-Centered Therapy emphasizes listening and tailoring sessions to each person. The therapist follows the client’s pace, reflects what they say, and helps them build on personal strengths to tackle daily problems.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on identifying unhelpful thoughts and testing new behaviors. It is useful for anxiety, depression, stress management, and practical symptom changes through small experiments and homework.

Solution-Focused Therapy looks at immediate goals and workable steps. Sessions often map small, concrete changes that can make daily life feel more manageable and purposeful.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. Derek will collaborate with each person to choose or combine methods based on goals, preferences, and what’s been tried before. That means checking in early and adjusting the plan as needed so sessions stay focused and useful.

If you want online sessions, confirm the available formats when you start the booking process because the biography does not list specific session types. Online work can make it easier to fit therapy into a busy week, allow for shorter check-ins when needed, and reduce travel time so people can schedule around work, caregiving, or health appointments.