Vita Chavez
Trauma-Informed, Culturally Responsive Therapy
Pronouns: She/Her
Licensure: LCSW
Location: Rhode Island and Washington
Languages: English
Sliding Scale: Yes
Insurance: Aetna, BCBS, Carelon, Cigna, Harvard, Medicaid, NHP, Optum, Tufts, UHC
Accepting New Clients: Yes
Specialties:
Addiction, Anxiety, PTSD, persistent mental illness and co-morbid disorders, chronic illness and pain, polyamory and non-monogamy open relationships, Neurodivergence, repetitive behaviors, cannabis use, criminal justice system, Depression, Domestic or Intimate Partner Abuse, Drug or Substance Use, Gender affirming care, LGBTQ+IA, Immigrants/ Refugees, Trauma, Immigrant Rights, Political & Climate Stress, spirituality, Transgender people/community.
ABOUT ME
Vitalina is an LCSW in the state of Rhode Island. She obtained her Master's in Social Work with a Mental Health Practice Certificate from Simmons University of Massachusetts and is dedicated to providing care for a diverse range of clients. Vita is a bilingual (ENG/SPN), multicultural, and neurodivergent individual who is committed to delivering quality care to vulnerable communities and individuals who often face barriers to accessing mental health services. She understands how intersectionality from all systems connected to clients can significantly impact their well-being and mental health.
Vita focuses on an inclusive and holistic approach to empowering clients by teaching them skills that can be widely applied to their lives. She believes in providing a culturally sensitive and competent practice rooted in ethics and social justice. Her particular areas of expertise and passion lie in working with individuals who struggle with navigating life as a neurodivergent individual and those within marginalized communities such as the BIPoc and LGBTQIA+. She also focuses on working with those struggling with anxiety, depression, and PTSD. Vitalina is a dedicated lifelong learner and actively seeks out opportunities to enhance the client experience and expand her therapeutic repertoire.
Vita emphasizes the need of customizing her approach to suit each client's particular needs and circumstances and believes in meeting clients where they are on their therapeutic journey. She uses a diverse range of therapeutic methods, including Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), strengths-based solution-focused therapy, mindfulness exercises, and other strategies that are supported by research. Vita aspires to offer a thorough and personalized approach to treatment by integrating a variety of therapeutic modalities.
Why I Do This Work
“Many people come to therapy carrying pain shaped by displacement, survival, and systems that asked them to adapt rather than be cared for. My work is about creating space to understand that pain in context, reconnect with your own wisdom, and move forward in ways that feel safe, respectful, and true to you.”
— Vita Chavez
My Approach in Practice
I approach therapy with the belief that people’s responses make sense within the conditions they have lived through. Many of the patterns that bring someone to therapy developed as ways to survive chronic stress, trauma, displacement, or exclusion. I do not see these responses as problems to fix, but as meaningful signals that deserve care, context, and respect.
My work is grounded in meeting you where you are. I take time to understand how identity, culture, spirituality, health, relationships, and systems such as immigration, disability, or the criminal legal system shape your daily life. Therapy with me is not about pushing change before safety or readiness exists. We move at a pace that honors your nervous system, capacity, and consent.
I work collaboratively and holistically, drawing from trauma-informed care, cognitive and strengths-based approaches, mindfulness practices, motivational interviewing, and spiritual healing traditions when they feel aligned. Rather than following a single model, I adapt my approach to what is most useful and meaningful for you, whether that means building practical skills, processing past experiences, navigating relationships, or reconnecting with parts of yourself that have been overlooked or silenced.
I am deeply committed to culturally responsive, justice-rooted care. As a bilingual, multicultural therapist with lived experience of neurodivergence, chronic illness, and bicultural identity, I am attentive to how power, history, and systems impact mental health. My goal is to offer a space where clients from marginalized communities can feel seen, understood, and supported without needing to explain or justify their experiences.
People often seek therapy when their experiences no longer make sense in isolation. Many of the clients I work with are navigating distress shaped not only by personal history, but by systems, environments, and long-term conditions.
Trauma shaped by systems and lived conditions
Clients often come carrying the effects of migration, family separation, racism, colonization, criminalization, chronic stress, or repeated relational harm. Therapy becomes a space to understand how these conditions have shaped survival responses, relationships, and emotional patterns without pathologizing them.Neurodivergence, disability, and chronic health stress
I frequently work with people navigating neurodivergence, chronic illness, pain, or acquired disability. Many arrive exhausted from masking, over-adapting, or being misunderstood in medical, work, or family systems. Our work focuses on reducing shame, honoring capacity, and building ways of living that are sustainable rather than extractive.Anxiety, depression, and emotional dysregulation
Clients may struggle with anxiety, depression, shutdown, or emotional overwhelm that feels difficult to control or explain. These responses are often understandable adaptations to long-term stress or unsafe environments. We work to understand these patterns, build regulation skills, and create steadier internal and external supports.Identity, relationships, and social context
Many clients are navigating identity exploration, gender-affirming care, LGBTQIA+ experiences, non-monogamous or kink-affirming relationships, spirituality, or changes in family and community roles. Therapy offers space to explore these experiences without judgment, pressure, or the need to justify one’s identity.Culturally responsive and justice-rooted care
Clients often seek me out because they want care that acknowledges culture, language, spirituality, and lived experience. I work from the understanding that mental health is shaped by power, history, and access, and that healing cannot be separated from social context.A steady, non-urgent therapeutic space
Many people come wanting a space that is calm, consistent, and respectful. Therapy with me does not prioritize speed or performance. We move at a pace that supports nervous system safety, consent, and long-term change.
My work focuses on helping clients make sense of their experiences within the conditions they have lived through, while supporting practical skills, clarity, and self-trust in ways that align with their values and realities.
