Men Also Welcome at Center for Psychology of Women

Driving along Sunset Boulevard, you might have seen the , which has made its home in Echo Park for the past two years, under the direction of founder and clinical director Jessica Leroy. Would you be surprised to know that many of its clients are men?

LeRoy practices alongside fellow psychotherapist Dylan Berkey. LeRoy specializes in domestic violence, sexual assault and rape, while Berkey’s forte is in addictions, eating disorders and transitional life phases. Among the two therapists and psychotherapist-in-training Celine Alvarez, the women see approximately 60 patients.

LeRoy estimates 80 percent of those patients are women (ranging from age 16-60), 10 percent are couples, and 10 percent are men. While the Center’s main focus is on women’s issues, men are also welcome, and LeRoy calls her male clients “fantastic.”

LeRoy has been a licensed psychotherapist for five years. She chose to open the Center in Echo Park because she is a longtime resident who loves the area.

“This was the community that I was really involved in, that I’ve enjoyed being a part of it. It was great [opening here] because there was such a huge response. That’s what so great about living in this community--it is a community.”

How would LeRoy characterize this community’s women? “Very creatively intelligent,” she says. “Very strong, and very independent. They know who they are.” LeRoy laughs, “I swear they need to do Real Housewives of Echo Park. I would love to see that.”

Community Hub for Women

LeRoy describes the Center as a kind sort of community hub for women (and men) in Echo Park. She explains that, at times, she’ll come out of her office to find women simply hanging out. They’ll “pop by for coffee” or “take advantage of the wireless.” LeRoy loves the “community focus” that she believes the Center manifests.

“It takes some of that stigma away from therapy and therapists and makes it a little more acceptable. People just come by and hang out with us, and that feels really good. It’s a lot of fun. And that sounds backwards; like therapy, fun?,” she jokes. “That sense of community with other women can feel really nice.”

Moving forward, LeRoy foresees “definitely expanding our training for new therapists, creating new groups and workshops, and being really collaborative with the community; that’s something that’s really important to us.”

In discussing the value of therapy, LeRoy explains that “it’s really really nice to be able to be vulnerable with somebody and open up to someone.” The point, from her perspective, is to “work through [issues] and move past them. Therapy here at the Center is not about diagnosis and mental illness,” but rather, about acknowledging that “things are not working right now” and figuring out “how can we make them work.”

It’s an hour, she explains, to “just be yourself, you don’t have to put up any fronts.”

Advice for Echo Park Women

Whether you’re her client or not, LeRoy has this advice for the women of Echo Park:

“Don’t be afraid to ask for help. It doesn’t have to be from a therapist. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from your partner, your parents, your friends, your children. I feel like sometimes as women,” she says, pausing to disclaim “I'm totally generalizing here.”

“We take a lot on and we don’t know when to ask for help because we don’t want to burden anyone else, and yet we’re being burdened. if you need the help, ask for it, take it; you deserve it.”

If you are interesting in talking to the Center, feel free to contact them! While they do not accept insurance, they do offer reduced rates with Alvarez. Sessions range from $40-$140, depending on the therapist and the time of day.

Interested in visiting the Center? Stop by and see them at 2148 W. Sunset Blvd. Call them at 323-369-0755. You can also check out their website here.