About Franci Richardson, LICSW

Founder & Clinician, Build The Self Psychotherapy

I am a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW), holding the highest level of licensure to practice psychotherapy in Massachusetts.

For over a decade, I’ve worked with adults navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, chronic mental illness, health challenges, and major life transitions. Before becoming a therapist, I worked as a newspaper reporter, covering everything from high-profile trials to everyday community stories. That experience taught me how to listen deeply, ask meaningful questions, and recognize the power of people’s stories — skills that continue to shape my work as a clinician. My clinical career has taken me into hospitals, schools, courts, and community mental health centers. I’ve served as a psychotherapist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Revere, an independent Court Investigator for the Massachusetts Juvenile Courts, and a Crisis Clinician with the Department of Mental Health, where I assessed and advocated for children and adults in acute psychiatric emergencies. These experiences gave me a broad perspective on how people struggle — and how they heal.

I earned my MSW from the Smith College School for Social Work, and I bring a primarily psychodynamic, insight-oriented approach to therapy. I also integrate Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) to provide practical strategies for symptom relief. To strengthen this work, I completed advanced training in CBT and couples therapy at the Boston University School of Social Work and EMDR training at the Trauma Institute in Northampton.

I founded Build The Self to create a space where clients can feel safe to explore, heal, and grow. My work is guided by the belief that we don’t simply “find ourselves,” but actively build resilience, clarity, and healthier ways of relating to ourselves and others.