Meet Our Team - Erik Schlocker
Erik Schlocker, MSW, LICSW
Position at the Hallowell Todaro ADHD Center:
Clinical Director
How long have you been working at Hallowell Todaro ?
I’ve been working at HTC since 2011-ish? Its difficult to remember, but I started when there was just the one house for the Center on the east side of the street on 34th.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up mainly in Sammamish before it was called Sammamish. When my family moved to rural “Redmond” there were still party lines for phones. We moved from Southern California from the OC and I couldn’t believe we had to share our phone line with neighbors! It felt like we lived in the middle of nowhere. This was before Microsoft started…just to date me a whole bunch!
What are some of your favorite books, movies, and/or TV shows?
I’m a bit of a sci-fi nerd. I love anything (almost anything Star Wars related) and I love Star Trek too. But I also like crime dramas and I’m a big fan of Severance. But, I always have time to re-watch Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. I’m a fan of Haruki Murakami and his magical-fantasy writing style. I also love to read anything by Abraham Verghese. I’m a big podcast listener and really like news and humor podcasts the most.
What is your favorite sport and/or sports team?
Well, as I’m writing this this, the Mariners are going to play game 3 against the Blue Jays, so right now its baseball all the way. But, I really like watching Sounders soccer games and Formula 1 car races.
Complete the following sentences:
When I’m not at work, you can find me...
most likely at home or walking my dog, Bert.
When I want to de-stress, I...
I spend time with Bert and my partner. I do love a bike ride when its not too hot, dark or wet.
My favorite time of year is...
summer but early fall is pretty great too.
My favorite thing to cook is…
hmm, I’d rather eat than cook, but I’m ok at BBQ-ing salmon
The best gift I ever received was…
A ride-on train when I was age 4 or a mountain bike when I was a teenager. Maybe the mountain bike, because before having that, I had no idea how fun it was to ride a bike quickly in a forest!
If I could travel anywhere in the world, I’d go...
Right now it would either be Japan or somewhere where I could go scuba diving. I became a certified scuba diver on a trip to Australia a very long time ago.
What led you to pursue a career in helping others?
Like many folks, I think it’s probably due to family of origin experiences.
What education, skills and expertise do you bring to your role?
I have worked at Seattle Children’s for 24 years in a variety of roles. I started out as a mental health therapist a year after completing my MSW. I’ve worked in the social work department at Children’s since 2007. I really like working with anxious and depressed adolescents and their parents. I have experience creating and facilitating parent educations/support groups and found this practice to be incredibly rewarding and meaningful. The group I helped to create was designed for parents/care-givers of teens diagnosed with eating disorders, but the material was suitable (mostly) for parenting in general. I loved helping parents recognize that their child’s eating disorder was not their fault and that they (typically) possessed most of the skills to help their child to recover.
I also have a lot of experience mentoring practicum students in the MSW program at UW. I really have enjoyed helping students put theory to practice. For the past 5 or so years, I have been a clinical supervisor in the Social Work Department at Seattle Children’s. I have found a similar satisfaction in mentoring social workers and providing clinical supervision.
Who/what inspires you?
I find people engaging in challenging work and making change, despite how challenging it is to be most inspiring to me. I think this can be in the clinical setting in working with a client, but I’ve found the same inspiration in mentoring students and licensed professionals alike.
What’s your personal philosophy/approach toward the work you do?
Keep working on yourself and recognize that most change is iterative. Quick and dramatic change is probably unrealistic and unsustainable. And, anything of value is worth working hard to achieve.
What are a few small things people can do to increase their happiness?
Well, the small thing I’ve done recently that has made a bit of an improvement for me is deleting social media off of my phone. It wasn’t easy and sometimes I find myself going for my phone for an Instagram fix, but I’m generally happier without it.
We provide a range of support for people with ADHD.
