Israel "Rulik" Perla,PhD, MFT

Israel "Rulik" Perla,PhD, MFT

Telehealth Available
Professions: Counselor, Marriage & Family Therapist, Psychotherapist
License Status: I'm a licensed professional.
Primary Credential: MFT - 43965

Offices

1600 Shattuck Ave.
Berkeley, California 94709

My Approach to Helping

I want to know what brings a smile to your face as you realize there is life to be lived. Our relationship is in the service of real, lasting change that will come from collaboration based on trust.
There is a part in you, that know exactly why it came here and what is the task at hand.

I like to ask my clients early in our work? "How will you know that you received what you came for?" We re-visit this question until one day we both know the work is done.

While I will be keenly interested in how your past has brought you here, we will not dwell there. I am much more interested in what's present for you now and how the best in you can unfold.

The change that will revitalize your life will not come from insight alone. We will engage in dialogue, storytelling, relaxation, imagery, dream exploration, and pay attention to body sensation, the seat of the soul.

I am multifaceted by nature. A trained musician and composer, a highly regarded software designer, an experienced sailor, a resident and student of many international cultures, a life-long and committed spiritual practitioner, and a loving, happy father and husband.
I am an associate of the Milton H. Erickson Institute of the Bay Area and a member of CAMFT.

Specific Issue(s) I'm Skilled at Helping With

Life transitions. Loss of meaning. Spiritual confusion. Marriage and relationships.

How Psychotherapy Can Help

By helping inner parts claim their voice and space and resolving inner conflicts and restoring hope.

My View on the Purpose of Psychotherapy

live better through greater awareness.

What I Love about Being a Psychotherapist

Meeting people and helping them help themselves.

My Role as a Therapist

Like a midwife or a sounding board.
HOW DO I LISTEN?

How

Do I

Listen to others?

As if everyone were my Master

Speaking to me

His

Cherished

Last

Words.


(?The Gift? ? versions of Hafiz by Daniel Ladinsky)

My Therapy Focus

How
Did the Rose
Ever open its heart
And give to this world
All its
Beauty?
I felt the encouragement of light
Against its
Being,

Otherwise,
We all remain

Too
Frightened.

~Hafiz~

What I Usually Need to Know to Help

What do they love.

My Guiding Ethical Principles

Respect boundaries. Be aware of the right time. Be of service to my clients.

On the Fence About Going to Therapy?

Until one is committed
there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back,
always ineffectiveness.
Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation),
there is one elementary truth,
the ignorance of which kills countless ideas
and splendid plans:
that the moment one definitely commits oneself,
then Providence moves too.
All sorts of things occur to help one
that would never otherwise have occurred.
A whole stream of events issues from the decision,
raising in one's favor all manner
of unforeseen incidents and meetings
and material assistance,
which no man could have dreamt
would have come his way.

I have learned a deep respect
for one of Goethe's couplets:
"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. "


W. H. Murray
The Scottish Himalayan Expedition

Had a Negative Therapy Experience?

Instantes (Instants)

If I were able to live my life anew,
In the next I would try to commit more errors.
I would not try to be so perfect, I would relax more.
I would be more foolish than I?ve been,
In fact, I would take few things seriously.
I would be less hygienic.
I would run more risks,
take more vacations,
contemplate more sunsets,
climb more mountains, swim more rivers.
I would go to more places where I?ve never been,
I would eat more ice cream and fewer beans,
I would have more real problems and less imaginary ones.

I was one of those people that lived sensibly
and prolifically each minute of his life;
Of course I had moments of happiness.
If I could go back I would try
to have only good moments.

Because if you didn?t know, of that is life made:
only of moments; Don?t lose the now.

I was one of those that never
went anywhere without a thermometer,
a hot-water bottle,
an umbrella, and a parachute;
If I could live again, I would travel lighter.

If I could live again,
I would begin to walk barefoot from the beginning of spring
and I would continue barefoot until autumn ends.
I would take more cart rides,
contemplate more dawns,
and play with more children,
If I had another life ahead of me.

But already you see, I am 85,
and I know that I am dying.

Jorge Luis Borges

Important Factors for Choosing a Therapist

Chemistry - trust your intuition

How My Own Struggles Made Me a Better Therapist

.

Theoretical Influences that Guide My Work

All theory is for the comfort of the therapist.
I am inspired by Milton Erickson, Carl Jung and Thomas Moore to name a few.

What I Say to People Concerned about the Therapy Process

.

Ages I Work With

  • Adults

Languages

  • English
  • Hebrew

Client Concerns I Treat

  • Adjusting to Change / Life Transitions
  • Anger
  • Anxiety
  • Career Choice
  • Chronic Pain
  • Codependency / Dependency
  • Communication Problems
  • Creative Blocks
  • Depression
  • Divorce / Divorce Adjustment
  • Emotional Intelligence
  • Emptiness
  • Family Problems
  • Forgiveness
  • Grief, Loss, and Bereavement
  • Habits
  • Identity Issues
  • Inadequacy
  • Infidelity / Affair Recovery
  • Isolation
  • Life Purpose / Meaning / Inner-Guidance
  • Men's Issues
  • Midlife Crisis / Midlife Transition
  • Multicultural Concerns
  • Obsessions and Compulsions (OCD)
  • Panic
  • Parenting
  • Phobias
  • Pre-Marital Counseling
  • Relationships and Marriage
  • Religious Issues
  • Self-Confidence
  • Self-Criticism
  • Self-Doubt
  • Self-Esteem
  • Self-Love
  • Sensitivity to Criticism
  • Sexuality / Sex Therapy
  • Shame
  • Social Anxiety / Phobia
  • Spirituality
  • Stress
  • Suicidal Ideation and Behavior
  • Suspiciousness / Paranoia
  • Trust Issues
  • Values Clarification
  • Workplace Issues
  • Worthlessness
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Types of Therapy

  • Body-Mind Psychotherapy
  • Depth-Oriented Brief Therapy
  • Dreamwork
  • Emotional Freedom Technique
  • Existential Psychotherapy
  • Guided Therapeutic Imagery
  • Holistic Psychotherapy
  • Humanistic Psychology (humanism)
  • Hypnotherapy
  • Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)
  • Mindfulness-Based Interventions
  • Narrative Therapy
  • Nonviolent Communication (NVC)
  • Positive Psychotherapy
  • Self-Acceptance Training
  • Self-Relations Therapy
  • Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)
  • Transpersonal Psychotherapy
  • Voice Dialogue
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