Annie Brashem, LCSW
Licensed Clinical Social Worker
📞 510-545-3837
Location:
All sessions are virtual via HIPAA-compliant video platforms
Only available to residents of
California
In-Person
Fees:
$200 per 50 minute session
Free 20 minute consultation
Sliding scale prioritized for people who are receiving disability and unable to work, though will consider sliding scale for other situations as well
Types of sessions I offer:
50-minute sessions
Who I see in session:
Individuals 18+
End of life
Caregiving
Older adults
“We are more than our diagnoses and symptoms and yet those also matter!”
About:
Annie is a therapist in Oakland, California who specializes in working with people impacted by illness. After over a decade working in medical and palliative care social work, she decided to open a private therapy practice in order to more deeply support folks who are managing illness and/or disability along with the rest of their lives. She works with both the person who is directly affected by acute, chronic, or serious illness, or with injury, disability, chronic pain or medical trauma, as well as with their caregivers or loved ones.
She has a master's degree in Social Welfare from UC Berkeley and received a post-master’s certificate in Palliative Care from the California State University Shiley Haynes Institute for Palliative Care. Annie is deeply passionate about her work and doesn't shy away from the tough topics- pain, mortality, anger, sadness, loss, identity, and more. She knows and appreciates the bravery it takes to reach out for therapeutic support and hopes to be able to help foster the growth and healing that is possible even when illness or disability is disrupting how life was "supposed" to go.
Annie is also the spouse of someone with serious chronic illness as well as a parent- life is messy but we're here together for the journey!
I specialize in working with these populations:
Parkinson’s • Stroke • ALS • Multiple Sclerosis • Huntington’s Disease • Neuromuscular conditions • Cancer • Heart conditions • Lung conditions • Kidney disease • Autoimmune disorders • Dysautonomia • Post-viral syndromes • Chronic Fatigue • Caregivers or loved ones of the person with the diagnosis
My expertise comes from:
“I have always been interested in healthcare, and was drawn to medical social work because of its emphasis on whole person care- we are more than our diagnoses and symptoms and yet those also matter! In my career as a medical and palliative care social worker, I have journeyed alongside people in outpatient palliative care, acute care hospitals, and skilled nursing facilities. This professional experience is the backbone for my work now as an illness-focused therapist. I am also supporting a spouse through chronic serious illness and therefore come at this work from a personal lens as well. I have seen what it is like for folks to interface with the medical system- the often cold, clinical responses, the lack of information, the limited time we are given to discuss life-altering topics. And I also understand the illnesses- the medications, the procedures, the lingo, the way life can change on a dime. And I wanted to do more - give more space, more time, more compassion. I want to be the person who "gets it" full stop.”
Additional Credentials and Trainings
Advanced Palliative Hospice Social Worker- Certified (APHSW-C)