LICENSED CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER

Hi! I’m Megan!

I’m enthusiastic about almost everything, from how much I love the smell of new and old books to how much I despise filling out paperwork (cue existential dread).

Growing up, I was told that I’m too sensitive– which is true! I am super sensitive. To a beautiful sunset, subtle changes in the emotional energy around me, tags on my shirt, you name it. I’ve learned that my sensitivity is what allows me to deeply understand other people and know how to help them.

I’ve also learned I’m a bit like an orchid– in the wrong conditions, I languish (I’m looking at you traffic & messy spaces) but in the right conditions, I thrive. Through my own therapy, I’ve learned to embrace my sensitivity and create a life I’m passionate about.

My story

I developed an eating disorder in my teens. I started recovery at age 18, and by age 20, I was fully recovered.

The eating disorder symptoms and behaviors that scared my family and tortured me were gone. If anyone had asked me then, I would have said I was fully recovered.

Fast forward to age 23:

I looked back on myself just two years prior, and could not believe I had considered myself fully recovered! I had still been so rigid and fearful, so out of touch with what I really wanted. Now, I thought, I had fully recovered.

Fast forward to age 27:

I looked back at my 23 year old self and was aghast I had considered that full eating disorder recovery! Sure, I had been adequately nourished, but I wasn’t free. I could see that the eating disorder had still been present, albeit in subtle ways. Back then, I was still so afraid to take up space, to be assertive, to go after what I wanted. Surely now, at age 27, I had achieved full recovery.

Until I arrived at age 34 and looked back, only to realize I had still been carrying traces of the old eating disorder with me!

I had still been so concerned with what others thought of me, so self critical. Now, at age 34, I had found a peace I hadn’t imagined was possible for me.

But this time I knew this wasn’t my full recovery potential.

I now understand that I will continue to grow and find more of my true self in the process. My hope is that in another 5 years, I will look back at myself today and realize I have found an even freer, kinder way of being me.

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 Professional Information

    • University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC): 2010 Bachelor's Degree in Community Studies with a focus on Sex, Gender & Sexuality; Minor in Psychology (Go Slugs!)

    • San José State University (SJSU): 2015 Master’s in Social Work with a focus on Health and Mental Health

    • Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW): 2022 -Present

      • California License: #LCSW107498

    • Residential Treatment Therapist: Provided family and group therapy specializing in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and skill building to clients requiring 24 hour a day medical and psychological care as a result of an eating disorder. Provided meal support and behavioral interventions.

    • Partial Hospitalization Program/ Intensive Outpatient Program Therapist (PHP/IOP): Provided individual, group and family therapy to clients requiring day treatment for their eating disorders. Created personalized treatment plans and facilitated coordination of care with a multidisciplinary team. Discharge planning and outpatient treatment team building.

    • Experiential Dynamic Therapies (EDT) Fundamentals (2026) Dr. Scott Shapiro, PhD

    • Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP) Immersion (2025) Dr. Diana Fosha, PhD

    • Family Based Therapy (FBT- Maudsley Method) (2023) Stanford University

      • The gold standard for adolescent eating disorder treatment.

    • Emotion Focused Family Therapy (EFFT) (2020, 2021) Dr. Adele Lafrance

A question I often get is:

As a therapist, do you float around the world, never feeling big messy feelings?

Kidding! Alas, I have yet to transcend being human.

If you prefer to hold onto that vision of blank serenity for me, you probably already know too much.

If you’d like to learn more, read on.

Megan Bruce sits by the ocean in San Francisco, CA.

Fun fact, anyone?

  • Growing up in Fresno, CA I was called ‘weird’ a lot. Now that I’ve spent much of my adult life in Santa Cruz and San Francisco, I hear that I’m ‘quirky’ more, but I mostly just blend in.

  • I love a silly prank. Once a friend rearranged all my furniture before I got home, and I have never been so delighted. Oh, I got her back…

  • My introduction to racial justice was reading The Autobiography of Malcolm X at age 16. Still an all time favorite book. Sad that my awakening to racial injustice was well into my teenage years, but that’s privilege.

  • I collect magnets. My refrigerator is almost entirely covered. I dream of being a minimalist, but my fridge says otherwise.

  • I started listening to Chappell Roan back in 2021 before she made it big. That’s the coolest thing I’ve ever done. I’ve now negated all previously earned cool points by reporting it here.