Getting to Know Arianna Glascott, MSW: Therapy, Authenticity, and Celebrating the Wins

by Tiffany Todd, LCSW

When I sat down with Arianna, one theme emerged again and again: therapy doesn’t have to be all seriousness all the time. While she deeply values helping clients navigate difficult experiences, she also believes healing includes recognizing growth, celebrating accomplishments, and finding moments of lightness along the way.

Throughout our conversation, Arianna’s warmth and sense of humor were hard to miss.

What drew you to the field of therapy?

I’ve always known I wanted to be in a helping profession. From the time I was a little kid, I wanted to be a teacher, a doctor, a veterinarian, anything that involved helping others. As I got older, I discovered a love for psychology and realized social work was the perfect way to combine that interest with my desire to support people.

Can you share a little about your professional background and areas of focus?

I interned at a Chicago domestic violence shelter as well as a community college in Central Illinois. In both settings, I provided counseling and therapeutic services. Through those experiences, I found a love for working with survivors, anxiety-related concerns, attachment-related issues, and members of the LGBTQ+ community.

How would you describe your therapeutic style?

I would describe my therapeutic style as relaxed. I like to allow my clients to lead where therapy goes. That might be session by session or over a longer period of time, but I really like to work at the pace my clients set.

Arianna is also drawn to attachment-based approaches and has spent significant time working with Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), which focuses on understanding emotions, relationships, and patterns of connection.

What feels most important to you in the therapist-client relationship?

One of the most important things in therapy is being able to laugh at times. Obviously, always when appropriate, but I feel like clients often make progress when we can take a moment and giggle about something together.

I loved this answer because it reflects something that came through throughout our conversation. While Arianna takes her work seriously, she also values authenticity and creating a space where clients can be fully human.

How do you think about self-care within the context of mental health?

I really like focusing on nervous system regulation. I feel like when you regulate your body, your mind kind of follows.

I often use grounding techniques, breathing exercises, and progressive muscle relaxation. At the same time, a lot of finding what works is trial and error. I’m honest with clients that some techniques might feel a little awkward or forced at first. I want clients to be honest about what’s working and what’s not. If something doesn’t fit, we’ll move on to something else.

Is there something you find yourself reminding clients of again and again?

Celebrate yourself.

It’s easy to focus on what’s going wrong or what still needs work. Being able to acknowledge the good, the joy, and the accomplishments that a client has is just as important as processing the harder stuff.

This idea of celebrating progress surfaced several times during our conversation and feels like an important part of Arianna’s approach.

What do you hope clients carry with them after working with you?

I hope they carry themselves lighter, and I hope they continue to carry their confidence with them.

What would you say to someone who feels unsure about starting therapy?

Jumping into therapy is scary, but that scariness turns into progress eventually.

Therapy is collaborative. The more honest you are with a therapist, the more they can meet you where you’re at and hopefully limit some of that fear.

Are there any misconceptions about therapy that you’d like to challenge?

I think one of the biggest misconceptions is that you always have to have something sad to talk about.

I’ve had sessions where we’re celebrating a new job, an engagement, a successful coping skill, or a good grade on an assignment. Celebrating the good is just as important as processing the bad.

Is there anything else you’d like potential clients to know?

I definitely try to be as authentic as I possibly can. I feel like the more authentic I am, the more authentic my clients will be with me.

Then she shared what may have been my favorite line from our conversation:

“At the end of the day, we’re just two people.”

Final Thoughts

As our conversation came to a close, that sentiment seemed to capture Arianna’s approach to therapy perfectly.

She brings clinical knowledge, compassion, and a genuine desire to help clients grow, but she also brings warmth, humor, and authenticity. Throughout our conversation, she returned again and again to the importance of celebrating progress, making space for joy, and recognizing the strengths people already possess.

For clients looking for a therapist who values connection, collaboration, and showing up as a real person, Arianna offers exactly that. Whether you’re navigating anxiety, relationship challenges, healing from difficult experiences, or simply looking for support, she strives to create a space where you can be yourself, feel understood, and perhaps even find moments of laughter along the way.

And if there is one message she hopes clients carry with them, it’s this: celebrate yourself. The small victories, the moments of growth, and the progress you make matter just as much as the challenges you are working to overcome.

Book with Arianna today.