meet dawn
Dawn Schatz (pronounced "shots") holds a Master’s degree in Social Work, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and is certified as a Domestic Violence Specialist in the state of Delaware. She is also a certified Gestalt Therapist, having completed her training at the Gestalt Therapy Institute of Philadelphia.
Learn more about Gestalt Therapy
In her practice, Dawn works with adolescents and adults, male and female, on a wide range of issues including, but not limited to relationships, life transitions and adjustment, self esteem, sexual orientation, loss and grief, depression, anxiety, trauma, and abuse, including domestic abuse and sexual abuse. She particularly enjoys working with college students and young adults to develop resources and skills as they transition into healthy adult roles and relationships.
Dawn spent the first 10 years of her career as a Therapist and Program Director for a private non-profit organization, where she developed Delaware's only youth dating violence intervention program. She has provided therapy services for hundreds of adolescents and adults in abusive relationships and has reached thousands more through outreach presentations and workshops. She has also been honored to work with survivors of sexual abuse and assault along their roads to healing.
As part of her own self care and belief in using social media for good, Dawn administers the public Facebook group Good Matters. Anyone interested in seeing more positive news in their news feed is welcome to join.
Readers of the Middletown Transcript may be familiar with her monthly "Emotional Wellness" column, which she wrote from 2013-2017. As a proponent of self-care and compassion, she is continually on a journey to slow down and be in the moment. She loves spending time with family and friends, being outside on sunny days, getting her hands dirty in the garden, working up a sweat in Zumba, winding down with yoga, singing, reading, and taking care of her second "home", Wellbeing on Main.
Dawn can be reached at (302) 898-1616 or dawn.schatz@appocounseling.com
My Approach
"Heal the past, live the present, dream the future."
- author unknown
My therapeutic approach is eclectic, drawing upon various theories, but is primarily grounded in humanistic orientations, most notably Gestalt and Person-Centered. In both of these approaches, individuals are viewed as unique and seeking growth. In my work, I try to help clients gain increased awareness by learning to live more in the present; this is harder than it sounds in our “always on the go” world. As a result of my training and experience with Gestalt Therapy, my style includes the use of experiential methods, moving beyond the limits of strict “talk therapy”. My clients find therapy sessions to be supportive, engaging, and surprising, while at different times challenging, scary, exciting, and even fun!
Dawn Schatz, LCSW
Wellness
I believe…
…that the therapeutic relationship is build on mutual respect and equality.
…that individuals hold the answers to their problems and can find them with sufficient support.
….in supporting individual differences.
…that individuals can only be understood within the contexts of their environments and relationships.
…that the contact and relationship happening between myself and clients (the process) is as important as what we are talking about (the content).
…in bringing my full self to the therapeutic relationship with clients.
…that medication often has a role in improving one’s functioning, but can not be the sole solution.
…that the work of therapy can be maximized beyond the actual therapy session, by including “homework” assignments, recommended reading, journaling, adjunct services, etc.
…that new experiences can heal; a new experience with a supportive, safe therapeutic relationship can provide a corrective experience for past hurts.
