Faith-integrated EMDR and Christian counseling for women navigating chronic illness, medical trauma, and spiritual burnout — in person in White Plains, NY and by telehealth across Westchester County, the five boroughs, and all of New York State.
If you’re a Black or BIPOC Christian woman in New York searching for a therapist who actually understands chronic pain, medical gaslighting, and what it means to love God while your body and your faith are both failing you, welcome. You’re in the right place.
You’ve shown up for everyone else. Prayed through it, pushed through it, kept going even when you were running on empty. At Cheerful Heart Mental Health Counseling, you finally get a space to rest. Founder Shakira K. O’Garro, LMHC-D, is a Black Christian woman living with Stage IV endometriosis and adenomyosis herself, so she understands this unique experience, which affects so much more than your body. She built the practice to fill the gap in care that exists for Black and Brown women.
In-Person Therapy in White Plains, NY
New York is our home! Our physical office at 30 Glenn Street, Suite 205, White Plains, NY 10603 offers a dedicated private sanctuary for face-to-face counseling. For those who are exhausted by screens, 30 Glenn is where you can exhale, cry, and do the deeper work in person. In-person sessions are ideal if you’re local to Westchester and prefer meeting in the same space, or if EMDR and trauma work feel more grounding to you offline.
Telehealth Across Westchester, NYC & Statewide
Prefer to meet from home? Secure telehealth brings the same faith-integrated, trauma-informed care to women throughout New York, including:
Westchester County — White Plains, Yonkers, New Rochelle, Mount Vernon, Scarsdale, Rye, Port Chester, and beyond.
The five boroughs — Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, and Staten Island.
Long Island — Nassau and Suffolk counties.
Upstate & statewide — Buffalo, Rochester, Plattsburgh, Albany, Syracuse, and every corner of New York.
What We Help With in New York
- Individual therapy — evidence-based talk therapy for anxiety, depression, burnout, and life transitions.
- Chronic illness counseling — with specialized expertise in endometriosis, PMDD, adenomyosis, cancer, and autoimmune conditions.
- EMDR therapy — for medical trauma, PTSD/C-PTSD, and the distress your nervous system accumulates as you engage with the medical system. Faith-informed EMDR is available for those who want to interweave their faith into this body-based therapy.
- Brainspotting — a sister modality derived from EMDR that processes trauma tied to “brainspots,” areas you look at that are tied to memories. The core idea is “where you look influences how you feel.”
- EMDR groups — including GREP2 for single Christians with dating anxiety and G-TEP groups for women with endometriosis and medical trauma and RTEP for vicarious trauma in women’s health professionals.
- EMDR intensives — a format that condenses weeks of work into a focused half-day or full-day format.
- Christian counseling — therapy that makes room for your church hurt, spiritual burnout, and crisis of faith without spiritual bypassing.
- EndoKin Collective — a cohort-based EMDR group for Black women living with endometriosis and medical trauma.
Clinical Supervision for New York Counselors
New York is also where we support the next generation of clinicians. Shakira holds diagnostic privilege as an LMHC-D and offers trauma-informed, reflective clinical supervision to pre-licensed and licensed counselors in New York. Her areas of expertise are professional development, ethical practice, and working with complex presentations like chronic illness, medical trauma, and faith-integrated care. Learn more on our Clinical Supervision page.
Workshops, Consultation & Speaking Engagements Across New York
Shakira O’Garro, LMHC-D, is available for workshops, consultation, and speaking engagements across New York. Drawing on both clinical expertise and lived experience, she speaks and trains on medical trauma, chronic illness, endometriosis and mental health, caregiver burnout, faith and healing, and culturally responsive care for BIPOC women.
To book a workshop, consultation, or speaking engagement, book a consultation on our contact page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you offer in-person therapy in New York?
Yes. Cheerful Heart offers in-person sessions at our White Plains office, located at 30 Glenn Street, Suite 205, White Plains, NY 10603. This location is convenient for clients across Westchester County and even parts of Connecticut (Shakira is also licensed there). We also offer secure telehealth statewide.
Do you offer online therapy across New York and NYC?
Yes. We provide telehealth throughout New York, including Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, Staten Island, all of Westchester County, Long Island, and upstate. Shakira is licensed in New York as an LMHC-D (diagnostic privilege).
Can I find a Black Christian therapist in Westchester or NYC who specializes in chronic illness?
Yes. We specialize in supporting Black and BIPOC Christian women living with endometriosis, adenomyosis, PMDD, cancer, and autoimmune conditions while integrating evidence-based EMDR with genuine respect for your faith, in person in White Plains or online across New York.
How does EMDR help with medical trauma?
EMDR helps your brain reprocess distressing memories (e.g., dismissive doctors, painful procedures, several ER visits, years of diagnostic delay) so they no longer trigger a fight-or-flight response in your nervous system. We use specialized protocols like R-TEP and G-TEP built for medical trauma, offered in person or via telehealth.
Do you offer clinical supervision in New York?
Yes. Shakira offers trauma-informed clinical supervision to counselors in New York, where she holds diagnostic privilege as an LMHC-D. Individual and group formats are available. Learn more and inquire on our Clinical Supervision page.
Do I have to be Christian to work with you?
No. We specialize in faith-integrated care for Black Christian women, but we warmly welcome clients of all faiths, races, and backgrounds. We are an inclusive practice.
You’ve carried this long enough on your own. Book your consultation and let’s talk about what healing could look like for you, whether that is in person in White Plains or online across New York.
