Services
I enjoy working with late adolescents, adults of all ages and their partners. My individual therapy often involves examining how significant relationships affect your own functioning and how your feelings about yourself may be expressed in repeated patterns in your relationships. Through our collaboration in a caring and trusting therapeutic atmosphere, we identify directions that you can take to improve, build skills or transform your experience. You’ll be encouraged and supported in the process of making the changes you would like to see.
Couples therapy often focuses on key aspects of the relationship that enhance each person’s satisfaction with the relationship and that build a safe and supportive place for partners to share themselves, build connection, and resolve differences. We usually begin with a thorough assessment and identify resources and areas of strength as well as issues or skills that are problematic. In a non-blaming way, I assist partners to interact differently with one another and to re-build trust and positive feelings. We look at new ways to communicate effectively and resolve conflicts. Often therapy focuses on building or re-establishing satisfying intimacy. I welcome both traditional and non-traditional couples and seek to assist people to make changes in a climate of acceptance and optimism.
All of my work is informed by research findings and I strive to use the most effective strategies. Together, we tailor specific approaches to work for you and work actively to find your most successful steps for growth and change. My approach is practical and understandable and I encourage clients to ask questions and make choices that are best for them.
In my work with individuals and couples, I have several additional areas of expertise, as described below:
Grief and Loss- For those managing life-threatening, debilitating or terminal health conditions - I help you cope with the daily losses and stressors, as well as capitalize on the unique opportunities to connect with loved ones and resolve issues from the past. Therapy can help you to make sense of your condition, adjust to unpredictable losses and declines, and assist you to establish meaning in your life. Couples can benefit from a guided opportunity to support one another through the intense emotional roller coaster and prepare for upcoming changes.
For Caregivers – The tremendous responsibilities involved in being a caretaker can be both challenging and draining. Therapy can provide a safe outlet for the mixed emotions and negative impacts of this process. We focus on nurturing yourself, coming to terms with your feelings, and responding to the often unpredictable demands and losses of the process.
For those who are grieving - When I work with those who have recently lost a loved one, we focus on the enormous emotional and life changes you are experiencing. So often the loss creates a need for you to redefine relationships in your life and to negotiate new tasks that were not present before. Therapy provides a safe and nurturing environment for you to express your feelings and build your skills and confidence. I offer gentle assistance with rebuilding your life.
Consultation with parents about improving their family's well-being and functioning - including those who are going through divorce, developing co-parenting arrangements, or forming a step-family. Living in a post-divorce or stepfamily can be quite complex and may require both your own attention and professional guidance to best negotiate complicated solutions. Therapy can offer a blueprint for developing healthy relationships, arrangements that facilitate children’s growth and well-being, and establishing guidelines for interactions that are mutually satisfying. Recognizing that being a parent is a complicated and demanding job, our therapy also helps to build self-compassion and an accepting attitude towards self and others.
Infertility Support – A special area of expertise is in working with individuals and couples undergoing infertility treatment and helping them to maintain a healthy and optimistic perspective throughout the process. In addition to the physical and financial demands of the process, emotional and interpersonal stress can also arise, particularly as you go through multiple cycles of hope and disappointment. Therapy can help with predicting pitfalls and developing responses to manage problems as well as providing a safe climate for discussion of conflicts and feelings. Services are provided to heterosexual and GLBTQ individuals or couples.
Working with excessive alcohol use or substance abuse in the family –by assisting the using family member to establish sobriety, dealing with the emotional and behavioral changes of recovery or assisting those with an alcoholic or substance dependent family member to cope with their loved ones' behavior and create stable and meaningful lives for themselves, therapy can be helpful in dealing with the highly challenging dilemmas that alcoholism and substance abuse create.
