About Helm
Helm uses science-backed strategies to target your goals, root out avoidance, and take action to build the life you want. We take into account all parts of your life to not only decrease suffering, but also to help you flourish.
We work with adults, children, teens, and young adults and have offices in Brooklyn Heights and Manhattan. We also offer teletherapy for those who are in New York State.
We specialize in using Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and mindfulness-based interventions (including Dialectical Behavior Therapy or DBT-informed interventions), and exposure and response prevention (ERP) to treat anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), and eating problems.
Our clinicians value lifelong learning and are committed to providing state of the art therapy to help you reach your goals as quickly as possible.
Our Team
Elaina Zendegui, PsyD
Founder & Clinical Psychologist
Dr. Zendegui is a licensed clinical psychologist who provides in person and teletherapy in Brooklyn Heights and Manhattan, where she provides psychotherapy to individuals, families and parents as well as consultation to individuals, groups, and organizations.
She specializes in CBT and works with children, adolescents, adults, and families to clarify their values and learn individualized skills to meet their goals and make lasting changes. You will experience a warm, nonjudgmental, and collaborative environment.
Dr. Zendegui specializes in the treatment of anxiety, OCD, eating disorders, disruptive behavior, and emotion dysregulation. She has expertise in a number of treatment approaches, including ERP, Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), DBT, family-based treatment for eating disorders, behavioral treatment for selective mutism, and Parent Management Training (PMT).
In addition to working at Helm, she is an Assistant Clinical Professor at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, where she started and directs the Clinic for Overcoming Anxiety in Adolescents and in Children (COAACH).
Prior experiences:
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Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; launched & directed COAACH; co-directed the Adolescent Dialectical Behavior Therapy program
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Clinical Supervisor at Rutgers University
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Licensed Clinical Psychologist at the Montefiore School Health Program
Training & education:
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NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medicine, Postdoctoral Fellowship
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North Shore-LIJ Health System, Clinical Internship
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Bellevue Hospital, Clinical Psychology Externship
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Child Mind Institute, Clinical Psychology Externship
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Rutgers University, Doctorate in Clinical Psychology
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McGill University, Bachelor of Arts, with Great Distinction
Patricia Mensa, LMSW
Licensed Master Social Worker
Patricia is a Licensed Master’s Social Worker who sees clients in Brooklyn Heights and online. She uses mindfulness, CBT, and trauma-informed approaches to help adolescents, young adults, and adults with anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and interpersonal challenges using an intersectional and anti-racist lens.
Patricia’s goal as a clinician is to nurture a warm, collaborative and safe environment in which people feel confident in being their authentic selves. She takes pride in actively listening to experiences and appropriately validating feelings, while helping navigate challenges. Patricia believes that people are the architects of their lives, as they have had lived experiences before walking into her office. Her role as a clinician is to meet everyone where they may be and work together to address internal and external needs in a non-judgemental manner.
In her work, Patricia invites clients to make mistakes, explore their strengths, and build self-awareness to foster a sense of autonomy. She approaches her clients with gentleness and compassion in order to facilitate a brave space where they can have transparent conversations, process their emotions, and gain tangible tools they can use to cope in their daily lives.
Patricia earned her Master’s Degree from Fordham University and has worked in a variety of settings, including hospitals, outpatient clinics, and specialized schools.