Ruth Gasparik, LCSW, CASAC

Individual and Group Therapist

Ruth is a consultant at Freedom Institute providing individual psychotherapy and group counseling within an Integrative Harm Reduction Psychotherapy framework. 

Ruth’s experience includes work with an interdisciplinary healthcare team to address concerns around mental health, substance misuse, HIV/AIDS, and other chronic illnesses. Her work in an opiate treatment program provided an opportunity to participate in the inpatient unit, and dual-diagnosis rounds through Payne Whitney Clinic. This experience sparked her curiosity about the dynamic interplay between mental health and substance use disorders. 

She then pursued her certification in the treatment of alcohol and substance use disorders (SUD) through New York University. With her passion for the material, Ruth shared this knowledge through annual in-services for over 15 years to the Social Work Interns at New York Presbyterian Hospital in assessment, engagement, and intervention for SUDs, infusing evidence-based practices into the material. 

With over 25 years of clinical experience, she has realized that individuals hold an innate capacity for healing. As a certified yoga instructor, Ruth’s focus is on treating mind, body, and spirit in a compassionate and nonjudgmental atmosphere. Through a psychodynamic approach, she aims to meet people where they are, in a collaborative approach, to explore meaning and purpose in an individual's life, and to support goals of treatment that align with one's values. Her hope for counseling is to create a corrective, relational experience where clients can feel safe to explore one's self. 

Certifications include: Integrative Harm Reduction Psychotherapy (IHRP); Certified Alcohol and Substance Abuse Counselor (including Administrative and Clinical Supervision), Voice Dialogue Method, Integral Hatha Yoga Instructor and a certificate in Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy. Additional training includes Motivational Interviewing, CBT and DBT