My Approach to Helping
I enjoy helping people understand why they do what they do or feel how they feel. I believe everyone that walks thru my door wants to feel better and together we can make that happen. My first priority is to provide a safe/non-judgmental environment. I take time getting to know what experiences have brought a person to my office. I provide initial feedback to normalize the person's responses to their environment. Often the very patterns developed in order to survive have now become a hindrance to thriving. I want my clients to leave each session feeling like they have greater understanding of themselves and the tools they need to make positive change. I do a lot of educating on how emotions work and teaching emotional regulation skills. There is a cause for everything and when we understand the subtle causes that lead to unwanted emotions we can make effective change.
More Info About My Practice
I like to use a lot of examples when teaching skills. My experience working in the hospital, community mental health, and the corporate world have really helped me to have a greater understanding of what my patients have experienced. I have taken time to get additional training in trauma work, couples work, and personality disorders. I believe that most patients have what they need to strive once there is healing and understanding. I see most situations as a lack of balance. Often the healthy parts need to be strengthened and basic needs met. I enjoy watching my clients get relief and gain confidence as they break unhealthy patterns. I spent four years facilitating DBT groups and the feedback from my group evals: "Informative, Caring and Relaxed" Several times I heard this material should be taught in schools and I agree. Growth is uncomfortable but I believe it can be tolerable and exciting as well. I look forward to serving you and can assist with: chronic mental illness, major life change, intense emotional swings, poor relationships, chronic anxiety, grief, and trauma.
My Therapy Focus
Support, Validation, and Education. A lot of education on how environment, beliefs, and personality shape our reality. What is valid and what is emotional dysregulation. I educate and provide specific coaching with lots of examples. Process specific events so clients can understand and apply skills learned in therapy. Rec reading materials for clients that want to maximize their therapy time. Simple handouts for bullet points for those that know they are not going to read or do 'homework' between sessions. We target, 'hot buttons'. Beliefs, feelings, or patterns that keep causing pain and suffering.
