Call
Charles Andrews, LMFT

Charles Andrews, LMFT

Long Beach, California
VerifiedTelehealth Available

Professions: Counselor, Marriage & Family Therapist

Languages: English

Telephone: 949-518-1972

Website: Visit Website

My Approach to Therapy

Therapy helps you become your best self. The person you want to be. If you are weighed down with uncertainty, ambivalence, depression, anxiety or fear there is a way through and we will find it together. In a safe, caring, compassionate space you can be seen and heard, understood and known, perhaps for the first time in your life. No matter how dire things may seem right now, there is a way forward. Yes, it can be difficult and painful. This way forward can also be exciting, inspiring and life-changing. Effective Couples Therapy. Whether you'd like your relationship to be even better than it is, or if your intimate relationship is a quagmire of uncertainty, conflict and fear, I can help. You will learn to use powerful communication methods to promote genuine mutual understanding with your mate, and develop the caring, compassionate, loving, growing relationship you yearn for. I have worked in Addiction Recovery for some time now. Whether you're still making a commitment to stop using, or you've made your commitment, I can help and support you without judgement through whatever program is working for you; I specialize in mindfulness relapse-prevention skills and cognitive skills from SMART Recovery.

Supervision Details

If you need an outside consultation or independent supervisor for short or long-term supervision I'm available and experienced. I've engaged in group and individual supervision for the Southern California Counseling Center for the last 5 years. I specialize in Couple Therapy, but see adult clients in general with all the usual problems of living. I use an integration of many methods, including but not limited to ISTDP, Gestalt, Object Relations, InterAnalytic Couple Therapy, Somat

Supervision Specialties

Depression, Eating and Food Issues, Psychiatry / Medication, Psychology

Focused Modalities

Family Systems Therapy, Gestalt Therapy, Humanistic Psychology (humanism), Mindfulness-Based Interventions, Object Relations, Self Psychology, Somatic Experiencing (SE), Integration of different therapy models, Discernment Counseling

Fees & Rates

$100 for a 50 minute session

My Practice & Services

My fee for individual therapy of 55-70 minutes is $195. My fee for Couple Therapy is $225 for a 60-75 minute session. I accept payment cards through IVY Pay, a secure, HIPAA-compliant app on your cell phone. I do not take insurance at this time, however I will prepare a Superbill for you to submit to your PPO if needed. I offer a no-fee initial consultation so we can get to know each other and we can decide if we would work well together.

Specific Issue(s) I'm Skilled at Helping With

Effective Couple Therapy! I help couples in conflict who want to have a more gratifying and loving relationship. Couples learn ways to foster mutual understanding and trust at the deepest levels. I have investigated how intimate human relationships work--and don't work--for many years. I have helped many couples find a more caring, safe, authentic, loving way to be with each other, and I'd like to help you do the same.

My View on the Purpose of Psychotherapy

Therapy can help clients be more aware, caring, growing, compassionate people who revel in the power of their consciousness. Therapy helps us recognize the pain of being human and can help us live with that awareness and that pain--even make good use of it--as we also make it a part of our identity. From this work true compassion for ourselves, and for others, may grow. So, in a way, therapy not only makes you the person you want to be, it makes the world a better place.

What I Love about Being a Psychotherapist

Sometimes it can seem as if evolution gave us consciousness solely for the purpose of making us miserable! These days psychotherapy offers more than it ever has before to mitigate the suffering that seems to come, inevitably, with consciousness. I am passionate about the possibility of getting the lizard-brain and the forebrain and the body all working together in a satisfying, powerful harmony. The ongoing refinement and integration of talk-therapy, powerful behavioral and cognitive techniques and somatic and neuro-biological work have opened up endless possibilities for experiences and growth that can transform our lives.

On the Fence About Going to Therapy?

Just try it. A session or three cannot hurt you, and you may find the process of working with a good therapist intriguing enough that you want to run down a few things that are bothering you. A good therapist will help you do exactly that. And a lot more. The experience can be much like that of being in a small dark room. Gradually doors open, light shines in, and a world formerly unseen, unknown emerges for your exploration. How do you know if you've found a good therapist? Trust your instincts. When it comes to choosing a therapist, your instincts are usually right.

What I Say to People Concerned about the Therapy Process

Sometimes you might be overwhelmed by painful feelings. It's in the nature of things. However, I will work with you to create a safe, compassionate space where painful feelings can emerge as you are willing and able to allow them, and if you are overwhelmed sometimes, I will be right there with you as together we work through the overwhelm. In the wake of such experiences healing can take place.

Expertise & Specialties

Age Groups I Work With

AdultsElders

Groups I Work With

Couples (all orientations) High Creatives Substance Use Adults of all ages

Concerns & Challenges Addressed

Addictions and CompulsionsAdjusting to Change / Life TransitionsAngerAnxietyBlended Family IssuesCareer ChoiceCommunication ProblemsDepression

Therapeutic Approaches & Evidence-Based Methods

Anger ManagementDevelopmental Model of Couples TherapyExistential PsychotherapyFamily Systems TherapyGestalt TherapyHumanistic Psychology (humanism)Integration of different therapy modelsIntensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP)

Gallery

Location & Contact