Derrick McCluskey, LMHC

I was hesitant about finding a therapist for some past traumas I was struggling with and were affecting my life. I was lucky to find Derrick who changed my feelings on what therapy is within ten minutes of talking to him. He is a wealth of knowledge who guided me to use the tools I may have always possessed, but lost the self confidence needed to use them. Unlike my past therapist, Derrick makes you feel like a friend or family because you see he truly cares about you as an individual. He draws from his own life experience and years of counseling to guide you. I almost didn’t reach out for help but knowing people like Derrick exist in the mental health world is a great feeling. I would suggest anyone unsure or feeling any anxiety over therapy reach out to Derrick.

I started with Derrick around 6 months ago. I had some very poor luck (mostly my doing) and I didn't know where to start to rebuild my life. Derrick set me on a path to success with clear guidance and a simple plan. I have no idea where I would be without him, and I cannot express enough how great this guy is. He makes the experience wonderful and the environment was great. If you have an option to pick someone I promise you, you wont find a better option.

Derrick is a diamond in the rough! There are rare therapists of this caliber of excellence, accessibility, effectiveness, clinical skill, intellect, and personality. In fact, he is an expert in the rural area of Massachusetts. His wealth of knowledge is within reach to any person willing to do the necessary work. Every session is worthwhile and served as the primary catalyst to the healthiest season of my life. This is coming from a person that had severe complex trauma and multiple diagnoses including Bipolar Type 1, and with his techniques/teachings- I have finally let those haunting manic Octobers rest. This is the sort of therapist that will remind you where your backbone is, or how to get one if you’ve been sloth-like, and how to keep moving forward in life and have faith in yourself. It simply doesn’t get better than this clinical style. If you meet with this therapist, I am sure it will be life-changing and such a gift. Thank you, Derrick!k.

Therapy can be hard, and depending on the approach the therapist takes it can really make a difference in recovery. I had been in therapy for about 2 years before working with Derrik. In that time i had really struggled to make any progress in recovering and healing from cptsd and trauma.I have found that Derrik's therapy methods have made a tremendous improvement in my mental health and my life. At first his approach might feel rough or very challenging, but that's because he knows you can get better and will push you and help you move in that direction as long as you're willing to meet him halfway. A different approach than generalized talk therapy, and i think that's a great thing.

Super overdue review- I am a former client of Derrick's (due to a sudden move to another state). I am a 22 year old woman with often crippling generalized anxiety and depression. I have seen around 6 different therapists in my life, but Derrick has been the most helpful by far. In my experience, a therapist will typically act as (only) a friend, being understanding, but unwilling to give you the honest and sometimes harsh feedback that you NEED to get past the inevitable obstacles in life and help you to thrive. Upon first meeting Derrick, I was a little overwhelmed and I felt that he may not be the best fit, but I am SO glad that I stuck with it. He is very genuine and authentic and goes through sessions with a no BS approach that cuts to the root of problem and helps you to reach solutions instead of dwelling in your past. I still use the many tools that I learned in these sessions in my everyday life, practice routines that we discussed, and flip through books we looked at.

Derrick provides the best therapy. As someone who underwent three significant psychoses and many therapists over the years, Derrick rises above the rest. He tells you honestly where you are at psychologically and physically, while always encouraging you to become a better version of yourself. I have never had a therapist who has significantly impacted my life as Derrick. He encourages you to make the most of your life and to rise above. Thank you Derrick for all you do. Looking forward to our next session.

I was skeptical about Derrick helping me when we started. I had seen 5 different therapists over the past 10 years with little to no improvement in the problems I was trying to address. Flash forward a year and about 50 sessions and I finally have a year sober, I finally have more confidence, I finally feel like I have a Therapist who's in my corner and I finally have hope. Derrick acknowledged my past traumas in a sensitive manner but he got me focused on the future from the get go. The art of getting someone to set and achieve goals without feeling pressure to do so is something I don't understand and I joked that he has tricked me into being a better, happier person. If you are suffering with depression, addiction, anxiety or you need to make a change in your life I urge you to make an appointment with Derrick.

He helped me tremendously when I was going through a hard time! He knows what he’s doing and is very honest and real about things. I learned a lot about myself through working with him! I would recommend him to any and everyone! He literally changed my perspective which changed my life!!

I have been in therapy for approximately one year. Within that year I have learned life changes lessons and as my therapist says, added tools to my tool belt. When I started therapy I was unlike my normal self; frantic, stressed and anxious. Together we worked through ways to manage stress, anxiety and all sources of it. Without therapy I would most likely be divorced and on, or headed down a very bad path as I had no coping mechanisms. For me at least, many of these “catch phrases” like coping mechanisms and tool belt seemed understandable on the surface but really take hours and months to really understand. Much more time to put into practice. If you are like me and think your doing alright, you could be doing great. A huge lesson learned so far is that life is ever changing and no one state will always be adequate. People always a red to work on themselves and it is a never ending project. Don’t confuse that with work but something that gives back as much or more than you put i n.

Making the discussion to seek therapy is painfully hard. It's like admitting to the world, and yourself, that you're societally not good enough and personally flawed. Now you'll have the tangible forms out there to prove it. I vividly remember sitting in my car prior to intake, debating with myself whether something was or wasn't intimately wrong with me. Whether, instead, I could just go back home. So. Hard. I'm grateful I went in. Upon meeting Derrick, I learned it was a little silly to have such a debate with myself prior. There was absolutely nothing wrong with me. These flaws I beat myself up for, they are inherent in everyone. The fact that I'm here acknowledging them and seeking help, actually makes me quite brave. Life can get especially hard for some of us, and this is the guy you want in your corner when it does. If you're here debating whether to give therapy a genuine chance, do it. You'll learn those flaws you've always had, are actually what makes you whole.

I've been working with Derrick for a few months now and out of all the therapists I have had he has been the only one to help me with situations that I couldn't talk to others about. I highly recommend him as a therapist. He is definitely top of my list.

Very knowledgeable therapist who has a knack for getting directly to the issue and then offering thought exercises and breathing techniques that are actually effective at providing relief. He uses the ACT model approach, and does a great job explaining it. I also like that he has a vast list of books to recommend between sessions. I felt a very big change in my life for the better seeing him once a week for a couple of months.