Individuals
Individual therapy for adults and adolescents typically means meeting for 50 minutes, once or twice a week.
People come to therapy for many different reasons and need different kinds of help. Following are some of the reasons people come to me, and the variety of ways in which I work:
- Crisis or a pressing, immediate situation
Sometimes people need help to address and manage an immediate situation. With this type of work, I would help to address problem or symptoms and work toward skill-building and relief. This could be panic attacks, the start of or worsening of depression, adjusting to a new relationship or job, the ending or potential ending of a relationship, etc.
- Chronic Problems, Recurring Patterns, Life Dissatisfaction
Some people are looking for a chance to explore and transform more chronic or recurring problems with issues like self esteem, relationship or communication problems, disordered eating, anxiety, depression and lack of motivation. This work may require looking more deeply into patterns and addressing pain or trauma and assumptions and feelings about self and other.. People who want to work on these issues may want to meet more frequently, and may need longer-term, depth therapy to address these kinds of problems.
- Self Development, Creativity and Exploration
Some people come to therapy looking for a way to find an authentic sense of self and to lead a fuller life. They may want to explore or develop their creativity, explore what it is they really want in life, and enrich their personal lives by deepening understanding of themselves and their relationships with others. I take it as my job to guide the person through this process with a balance of exploration and a focus on their goals.
Couple’s Therapy
As a couple’s therapist, I strive to help the couple engage with one another in a way that leads to better communication and a greater capacity to express one’s needs and understand the needs of one’s partner. I consider each partner’s attachment style and way of relating. My approach is collaborative, direct and respectful. Through couples psychotherapy, I help couples to identify and change the patterns of relating that have led to feeling stuck or hurt. In facilitating this work, my hope is that my client’s achieve:
- better communication
- greater empathy for self and other
- more fulfillment from the relationship
- the tools to work through future issues
- and greater trust
Both same sex and heterosexual couples seek therapy with me for concerns including communication problems, sexual issues, infidelity, money/finance, jealousy, anger, family issues and premarital concerns.
Adolescents and Young Adults
Young people come to therapy when they may be struggling with academic pressure, identity issues, body image and self-esteem problems, trouble with feeling understood and accepted and substance abuse. I provide younger people the opportunity to talk about their lives and their concerns with a non-judgmental therapist who can listen to their side of the story and help them to better understand their problems. Through being heard and understood they can learn to better cope with their circumstances and to communicate more effectively with others in their lives. I have a strong interest in working with young women who are faced with the challenges of poor self esteem, body image issues, eating disorders and sexual identity questioning.