Knowledge is love and light and vision. ~Helen Keller
Talk Therapy
The Process
Traditional talk therapy involves a dialogue between client and therapist that develops into a therapeutic relationship. In the context of this relationship, client and therapist work to identify thoughts and behaviors that are maladaptive and the cause of distress. The interpersonal nature of this alliance enables the client to feel safe and to address concerns thus facilitating change.
Therapy can involve short or long term treatment. Short term therapy is solution-focused and works to solve immediate needs. The therapist takes a direct active role with the client focusing on a particular challenge that is impacting the client. Long term therapy works to help the individual develop insight and self-awareness with the goal of integrating various aspects of the personality into a unified whole. A skilled therapist can use a variety of approaches, both traditional and holistic to achieve results. Ultimately the process involves helping the individual connect with both the conscious and unconscious processes.
The Client
Many of my clients are accomplished, educated and high-functioning individuals who may even describe themselves as very successful, yet they are struggling with relationship and interpersonal issues, career difficulties, low self-esteem, substance abuse, body image issues, depression, anxiety, stress and blocks to creativity and personal fulfillment. Many feel that they should be able to work through their difficulties with hard work and logic. When it comes to longstanding patterns of thought and behavior, rational thought is rarely enough to solve the problem and make lasting changes. Therapy offers a great opportunity to improve your life by understanding emotions and how the past has affected your current thoughts, perceptions, feelings, and behavior. Change is difficult, but no need to compromise your potential, or settle for suffering, frustration, lack of direction, self-doubt or fear.
My Approach
Working with adults and adolescents, my approach blends a holistic philosophy that considers the "whole person" as well as modern psychological theory. It includes a strength-based perspective which is empowering by nature and identifies the positive resources and abilities that exists in the individual and solution-focused therapy which focuses on resolving the problem at hand. Relational therapy focuses on the relationship between client and therapist which then becomes a model for clients to use for healing in other important relationships in their lives. A psychodynamic approach helps the client become more aware of his or her wishes, fears, motivations and coping mechanisms. Part of the process involves helping the client gain more realistic perspectives about themselves and others in an effort to support growth, enhance relationships and improve awareness. I help the individual focus on present-day interactions, dynamics and relationships and their link to the persons past. Together we work to understand how these current distortions and vulnerabilities and our reactions to people and situations, are often rooted in the past. Dynamically oriented therapy involves maintaining a regular schedule of once a week for optimal progress. Some clients respond well when sessions include cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), which works to identify irrational and maladaptive thoughts, beliefs and assumptions that are related to negative emotions. In therapy, the individual learns to challenge these faulty cognitions and beliefs replacing them with realistic thoughts and appraisals, learning new behaviors in the process. Working in the here-and-now can be helpful when dealing with the cognitive distortions that contribute to chronic anxiety and depression. CBT is particularly helpful for those who would like to add structure to their lives, or who suffer symptoms of anxiety, fears, phobias and panic attacks.
If I feel that a client would benefit from services outside the scope of my practice, I will make appropriate referrals to qualified professionals.