My own healing has taught me that the relationship between therapist and client is an important factor in the healing process. We all need someone to "witness" for us, to see and hear us, and understand what we have come through. This helps us to feel "known" and valued. Depression, anxiety, and trauma can all impair our ability to live in the present, engage in the world around us, take good care of ourselves, and invest in friendships, partners and family. Healing re-connects our emotions with our body, helps us not just survive but thrive, gain pleasure from our daily lives, feel safe and content, give to others and more importantly, receive from others. One of the hallmarks of trauma is the inability to feel the love and care that others have for us. It prevents us from believing in the goodness of ourselves and from feeling fully alive. Psychotherapy can help to restore this.
I strive to create a space between us that is safe and containing. My goal is that in this space you will begin to flourish, develop tools for coping with stress and managing conflict, grow new strengths, feel grounded and connect with your hopes, aspirations and creativity. I think about you as we work and give careful and thoughtful consideration to what might work best for you. I offer feedback and different perspectives, and help you to develop the tools and skills to manage emotion and live in relationship with yourself and others. The techniques I use come from a wide variety of therapeutic approaches.
My intuition is a powerful guide for me. I consider one aspect of good health to be a connection with our intuition or “gut sense.” I think of intuition as our internal alarm system. It is our “warning bell.” It helps us to sense physical danger, but can also inform us about situations or people that are not good for us. If we are not tuned in to what is actually going on around and within us, we might miss the clues that signal when something threatens us physically or emotionally. Therapy can promote healing that restores the connection between our body, emotions, brain and nervous system.
What should I expect in therapy?
Therapy is different for each person. I will spend a lot of time getting to know you, your past history and current distress. Both in and out of the session, I put a lot of thought into how I might best help you and which methods to use. Together we will determine how often to come to therapy. Logistics and finances are a part in this decision. What you want to accomplish, how much distress you are in and how long you have been in distress also help determine the frequency. During our first few sessions feel free to ask any questions you might have about therapy and my approach. Your reflections on past experiences with therapy and what did or didn’t go well are helpful to me.
How long do sessions last?
Sessions last between 45-55 minutes.
How long will I be in therapy?
The length of the therapy varies a lot. When someone needs to address a current problem or issue, the therapy may be of a shorter duration, just a few weeks or months. Someone with longer standing issues may want to come longer. We will decide together what is best for you. Often both therapist and client recognize when it is time to stop. Then we will review what has been accomplished and how you can best maintain the gains you have made in therapy. Many times people stop gradually, spacing sessions to see how they do with less contact. It is always possible to return if you need further help or if a different concern arises.
When is therapy helpful?
Therapy is helpful when something interferes with your ability to live your life fully. This means different things for different people. It might mean:
You have difficulty dealing with anger, how to be in touch with this emotion, how you express it, how to convey it to others in a way that hurts neither of you.
You are preoccupied with things that might happen, worrying about your future, how others see you, whether you are competent.
You have nightmares or difficulty with sleep.
You are recovering from an accident or a surgery.
You feel depressed or anxious.
You are preoccupied with the past and bad things that have happened.
You spend a lot of time trying to please other people at your own expense.
You feel something is getting in the way of living, loving and feeling content.
You are experiencing conflict or difficulty in relationships with partners, friends, or co-workers.
You aren’t as resilient or as emotionally flexible as you would like to be.