My Approach to Helping
You served, and now you’re fucked. You spend your nights worrying about whether or not you did the right thing, about whether you’re failing your family, about how you and your spouse don’t connect anymore. You would have done this, and you should have done that, and oh shit what did I do, and those things haunt you at night. You’ve tried everything to get it done on your own because, hey, they trained us to be independent and strong, right? But you don’t feel strong anymore. And you don’t feel comfortable talking to anyone. A: you don’t want to relive it, and B: you’re not all share-y and interested in talking out your garbage.
More Info About My Practice
Bearings is different. Bearings operates on the military principles of Honor, Courage, and Commitment. I’m a Marine myself, and I know how you think, what you doubt. Your humanity is still there. This will be hard at times, but I know how badly you want it. You may feel lost right NOW, but I’ll be your compass. I’ve got the tools to get you back home.
You brought the war home with you. Your family is suffering. I can teach all of you how to be as strong as that gym-rat PFC who’s obsessed with the UFC, so you can get through the Suck together. You want the nightmare to stop, feel like yourself again, feel wanted again, but you don’t know where to start. Call me today. Get your bearings. Let’s get started.
My Therapy Focus
I cut my teeth as a certified domestic violence counselor as an intern, moved to mobile crisis response and suicide hotline as an LMFT-associate, and then moved into full time trauma work as a fully licensed LMFT. For me, helping those with traumatic experience is not just a job, it is a vocation. I am a perpetual student of trauma, constantly staying abreast of the latest research and treatments to provide the best possible options and outcomes for my clients. My most frequent modalities are Cognitive Processing Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapies. However, I am experienced in other modalities, including CBT, IFS, and SFBT, and utilize whatever is best for my client's needs. I am proficient with clients experiencing depression, PTSD, and dissociative identity disorder.
Had a Negative Therapy Experience?
I often tell my clients that going to a therapist is like taking your car to a mechanic. If the mechanic doesn't understand how the car works, or can't fix it, you don't give up on the car. You find a new mechanic. Therapy is no different. If you didn't like your primary care doctor, you'd switch and find a new one, right? Don't stay with a therapist after 3-4 sessions if you don't feel comfortable by then. Don't give up on your mental health just because one therapist wasn't a good fit.
Why Going to Therapy Does Not Mean You are Weak or Flawed
Choosing to take care of yourself is the most important decision you can make for yourself and everyone around you. I have been around a lot of veterans who served in a climate that taught that admitting you were having trouble dealing with something meant you were weak. That's a hard belief to overcome, but it is absolutely necessary. In recent years, even the military has learned that mental health is just as important as physical health.
Asking for help is the hardest thing to do. Just look at you. You're not even sure you should tell someone you need help. "I can do this on my own," you think. Then you get lost in the woods, shadows following you, and you don't know where to go next. It doesn't mean that you can't find your way home. You just need a guide, a sign that points you in the right direction. A therapist is a compass, a north star, to help you find your way home. A therapist can't walk that path for you, but they can show you the way. That kind of work takes bravery and determination. That's not weakness. That's strength.