Psychotherapy offers an opportunity to explore barriers to satisfaction and manage ongoing difficulties. Many people begin therapeutic work because they are ready to make a change, but do not know how or where to begin. Within the confidential, supportive and judgment free environment of the therapy room, each individual can create space for positive change and growth. Below are some examples of ways we might choose to work together.
Individual Psychotherapy:
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: Psychotherapy serves to help people alleviate suffering and develop the capacity for new, positive experiences. Suffering comes in various forms, including anxiety or fear, depression, family and interpersonal conflict, or poor self esteem. Often we operate based on patterns outside of our awareness that were learned in childhood and may no longer be useful to us as adults. By bringing these patterns into one's awareness, we can work to identify and explore new, desired ways of relating to oneself and one's environment. My approach to treatment is holistic, as I tailor my practice according to the wants and needs of each individual.
Mindfulness: Perhaps you’ve already explored your past and how it impacts your current level of functioning. If interested, I use mindfulness-based practices to teach acceptance of your thoughts and feelings as they are, without judgment. This allows you to become more present with yourself and your environment, often resulting in an increased ability to see new solutions and gain new confidence. This type of work can also help manage symptoms of anxiety and fear, move through life transitions with more ease, and build tolerance for physical pain and discomfort.
Living with Chronic Illness: Individuals living with chronic medical illnesses, such as autoimmune disorders, long Covid, inflammatory bowel disease, or chronic pain, may be at an increased risk for experiencing anxiety, depression and/or substance misuse. Living with chronic illness or pain can impact one’s self esteem and sense of identity, and can hinder one’s confidence in building or maintaining meaningful relationships. In individual psychotherapy we can provide space for processing feelings of loss and grief, learning skills to relate differently to one’s illness, maximizing opportunities to engage in meaningful activities, and finding a balance between tending to your medical needs adequately, and also not letting them define you.
Loss and Transition: Life naturally presents us with challenges and transitions, often at times when we are not at our strongest to handle them. Not only do we grieve when we lose loved ones, but we also experience grief with loss of employment, loss of a relationship, loss of our environment, or simply the loss of what once was. When these losses or changes occur, we may not have the external or internal resources needed to work through the resulting emotions in a healthy manner. This can result in ongoing pain and an increase in other symptoms, including anger, depression, anxiety, and hopelessness. Utilizing the therapeutic relationship, I can provide guidance to individuals coping with loss and transition of all kinds, to allow you time to heal and help you move forward.
Group Psychotherapy:
Women’s Alcohol Use Group: I am currently accepting referrals for my new Women’s Alcohol Use Psychotherapy Group for female identifying individuals seeking to explore their relationship with alcohol. Utilizing a harm reduction framework, this group provides a safe and supportive space to identify multiple meanings and functions of alcohol use, assess potential for harm and risk, identify opportunities for values-based positive changes, and enhance skills to manage urges and cravings. It will also be a space to gain a better understanding of how relationship dynamics, thinking patterns and emotion regulation impact drinking behavior, and a place to connect with other women seeking to increase quality of life through reduced drinking, moderation, or abstinence.
Chronic Illness: I currently facilitate an open, ongoing chronic illness psychotherapy group. This interpersonal process group is tailored to individuals in their 20s through 40s who are living with chronic illness or chronic pain. The group focuses on learning skills to relate to illness differently, building self compassion, providing peer support and processing feelings around a new or longstanding medical diagnosis. Please contact me directly to learn more about the group and see if it might be a good fit for you.
Through empathic listening and supportive feedback, I utilize a strengths-based approach to create a safe environment that encourages the process of change. We will work together to explore and understand individual changes you would like to make in order to reduce suffering, increase insight, and generally lead to a more fulfilling life.