My Approach to Helping
Even the healthiest people and relationships have raw spots. Individuals tend to come to see me when they've reached a point of impasse - they're stuck in a negative cycle and don't know how to get out. This could be due to a variety of circumstances. Couples often come when they're sick of repeating the same arguments year after year with no resolution, or when there's been a significant rift in the relationship like infidelity, a sense of abandonment, or just a growing disconnect. If these kinds of concerns resonate with where you are right now, I hope you'll reach out to me.
I find it invigorating and satisfying to see depression shift toward satisfaction and joy; to watch anxiety give way to confidence; to collaborate with people and see troubled individuals and relationships go from conflicted to loving. Over the past 30+ years as a therapist, I've found deep motivation from seeing the varied concerns people bring to therapy transformed through our mutual effort. My sessions are highly collaborative and relaxed, with lots of space for you to process your present as well as the family history and dynamics that have shaped who you are today. I want to offer you a safe, and non-judgmental relationship in which you can count on respect, confidentiality, a sense of humor, and honest feedback - feedback that supports you in attaining your goals. Through our work together, you'll grow in your ability to deal with hardships in a way that doesn't let them steal you life.
More Info About My Practice
Out of an abundance of caution, I am offering all my services via Telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic. That seems like a natural fit with individual therapy, but I also use Telehealth in my couples work. I typically conduct these sessions with the couple in the same room using the same device. This enables me to observe the dynamics between you while enabling you to learn more about the dynamics of your relationship as well. Even though I'm not in the same room with the two of you, I've been impressed by how connected couples can be with each other and with me as the therapist over video chat.
My training is in Family Systems Therapy and Relational Recovery Therapy. Family Systems therapy is great at defining and clarifying emotional and behavioral patterns in families that function as a strength or a deficit. Once you see what may be holding you back, Relational Therapy excels at building the skills you need to enhance your strengths, no matter where they come from; and to disempower the negative behaviors that can wreck personal and professional relationships.
I've added an eclectic skill set tuned to tackle a wide range of personal and relationship needs. Together we will engage your strengths and increase your options so you feel more effective and satisfied.
Challenging as it may be, getting a handle on behavioral styles and emotional patterns that work against your best interest can bring you closer to meeting your goals.
What I Usually Need to Know to Help
We learn a lot about who we will become in the families we grow up in, the peer groups we travel with, and to some degree in our social media contacts. Each of these can have a strong impact for good or ill. While I don't spend a lot of time on the past, I do want to understand the many factors that have influenced you. To that end I draw a Genogram, a sort of emotionalbehavioral family tree, that we can refer to as you make progress.
