My Approach to Helping
Hello! When we meet, I hope to learn what you've been thinking about, how you've been feeling, what brings you happiness and authenticity, and what stirs up the inner struggles that keep you feeling stuck or unhappy. During our conversations, we can identify and strengthen the patterns, feelings, and skills that have been helpful in your life. We can also dig deeper into the patterns and thoughts that have caused trouble in your life, see what created and reinforced these patterns, and figure out ways to begin shifting these in a more helpful direction.
I am a Certified EMDR Therapist and also offer traditional talk-therapy to help people overcome trauma and difficult life experiences, address mood struggles such as anxiety and depression, and overcome feelings of low self-worth, lack of safety, or lack of control in life. I strongly believe that the way we identify directly impacts our experience in the world and in therapy, and I hope to make my office a space where you feel comfortable talking about the differences that exist between us that might impact our relationship or my understanding of your experience. Together, we will create a plan for our work together that should leave you feeling comfortable, hopeful, and ready to take the first step of change.
More Info About My Practice
Polaris Counseling and EMDR is centrally located in a wheelchair-accessible office off of Woodland Ave. and Valley West Drive in West Des Moines. Payment options include cash, check, credit card, and health savings accounts. While I'm not contracted with any insurance, I can provide super-bills for you to submit directly if this is allowed by your provider and plan. Traditional talk-therapy or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) are both available treatment options, and together we can decide what the best approach may be for you. Telehealth sessions are also available.
My Role as a Therapist
People come to me for counseling for any number of reasons, and I believe that you are the one who is best able to determine how counseling should be used and what goals should be worked toward. Sometimes people do not know what their goals are, but simply that they aren't happy or that their life isn't how they'd like it to be. Other times people know exactly what their goals and problems are, but don't know how to reach them or what holds them back. Wherever someone happens to fall on this spectrum, it is always a privilege for me to be a part of this process of healing and growth, and to help others find answers and make their desired changes.
Regardless of the reasons why someone comes to see me, my goals as a counselor always include: developing a trusting therapeutic relationship in which you can feel comfortable, safe, and free to express your truest self; helping you develop and enhance skills for addressing your specific concerns; and helping you understand and overcome the underlying reasons for undesired patterns, obstacles, or struggles in life.