My Approach to Helping
I love working with pre-teens, teens, and adults who are tired of the struggle (whatever that may be) and want to live more fulfilling, and often more authentic lives. My patients often want to discover new possibilities for themselves. Their concerns often go beyond anxiety, depression, or a trauma history. Low self-esteem, feelings of shame or guilt, regrets, experiences of loss and grief, relationship difficulties, family of origin problems, and existential concerns are all matters that could emerge at any time in my work with patients. Life transitions and adjustment difficulties are also challenges my clients work through in therapy.
I believe that our pain, although likely triggered by current stressors (or just life itself), often relates to early life experiences. It is usually in our early interactions that we first develop enduring patterns of relating to ourselves, others, and the world around us. Difficulties tend to arise when our characteristic ways of being and relating, even though helpful early on, are no longer consistent with the person we want to be.
What then?
Therapy provides the conditions that allow for a deeply personal journey toward self-knowledge and growth. The therapeutic relationship invites us to shift our gaze inward and challenges us to listen to the wisdom of our inner voice, which may have become almost inaudible. Therapy offers this possibility of growth and transformation through providing a steady, reliable time for reflecting, feeling, or simply being in the presence of a professional who is attuned and in sync with your emotional world.