Heather Benak, LICSW
“Every person has strengths and unique abilities. My aim is to help clients tap into their inner resources, learn new skills, strengthen their sense of purpose, feel more at ease in the world, and build meaningful connections with others”
Heather Benak is licensed to provide telehealth services to clients located in Massachusetts and South Carolina.
Background & Qualifications
Heather Benak is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) with over 17 years of clinical experience. She believes that every person brings strengths, abilities, and inner resources to therapy, even when those qualities may be difficult to recognize during challenging times. Her goal is to help clients better understand themselves, develop practical skills for managing difficult emotions, heal from painful experiences, and create meaningful change in their lives.
Heather’s approach to therapy is warm, collaborative, and trauma-informed. She believes therapy is not one-size-fits-all, and that treatment should reflect each person’s goals, strengths, personal history, and readiness for change. She works to create a space where clients feel comfortable being themselves – a space that is welcoming, nonjudgmental, and authentic. At the same time, she believes therapy should be practical and beneficial, helping clients develop concrete skills and strategies they can carry into their everyday lives and relationships.
Heather works with adolescents and adults experiencing a range of concerns, with particular experience treating trauma and PTSD, anxiety, emotional dysregulation, relationship concerns, and significant life transitions. She is trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and has extensive experience with Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), including participating in DBT consultation teams and facilitating skills groups. Depending on a client’s needs and goals, she also incorporates Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), mindfulness, and somatic approaches into treatment.
Heather earned her Master of Social Work (MSW) from Columbia University in 2009 and began her career in community mental health before moving into outpatient private practice. Her clinical experience has included working with adolescents, adults, families, and individuals navigating trauma, mood and anxiety concerns, chronic health conditions, grief and loss, relationship difficulties, and major life transitions.
She provides in-person therapy in Hingham, as well as telehealth therapy to clients throughout Massachusetts.
Outside of her work, Heather enjoys yoga, cooking, traveling, and spending time outdoors with family and friends. She values curiosity, connection, and finding balance in everyday life.
