Delta Bates
Licensed Clinical Social Worker
 

Hey there, I’m Delta (they/them), a Licensed Clinical Social Worker providing in-person therapy.
Most of my clients come from what we euphemistically call “marginalized communities” —
people who insist on surviving despite all the forces arrayed against them. My goal is to help
you move beyond survival mode and toward living life on your own terms, carving out space for
yourself in environments that may not have been built with you in mind.

My work is grounded in Dialectical Behavior Therapy, which I use as an organizing framework
rather than a rigid protocol. With mindfulness and compassion, we can learn to hold two
seemingly contradictory truths at once: a relationship can matter deeply and still be harmful; a
painful loss can open unexpected doors; you can accept where you are while still working
toward change. We’ll practice skills while also exploring why a behavior makes sense in context,
what keeps it going, and how it fits or conflicts with what you value. I will pay close attention to
how you seek closeness, respond to opportunity, and cope with uncertainty, raising questions
of agency, freedom, responsibility, isolation, and meaning. Because when it comes to how you
experience yourself and your life, I care about more than mere symptom relief. I see my role as
walking alongside as you build a life that feels meaningful, self-directed, and rooted in what you
care about — not what you’ve been told to care about.

Therapy with me is active, collaborative, and often irreverent. You can bring your whole self,
complexities intact. I’ll hold space gently and push you firmly, sometimes asking hard questions
and sometimes making a poorly-timed joke. I welcome feedback (unless it's about my bad
jokes), and will regularly invite reflection on how our work is translating into your life. I bring
lived experience with childhood trauma, family estrangement, financial insecurity, queerness,
and late-identified neurodivergence, all of which inform my understanding of being just a bit
out of step with others. I won’t minimize the stress and strain you might be living under, even
as I nudge you to cultivate more resources and insist on celebrating your gifts.

Outside of work, I enjoy gardening, reading about white-collar crime, psychedelic adventuring,
weightlifting, and attending the elusive 6:00 pm dance party (hey, I’m in my 40s).