THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES

I am an action oriented therapist, who believes the therapeutic process is a partnership."

Therapeutic Approaches

The brief description presented below of some of the therapeutic theories and approaches that I bring to my work with you are here to help you attain a general understanding of my therapeutic style and approach to therapy. Similarly, it is important to note that my uniquely eclectic approach expands well beyond the Strengths-Based, Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Marriage and Family Therapy, Addictions Counseling, and Holistic Healing approaches.

Strengths-Based Therapy

Strengths-Based therapy focuses on what is going right in your life. We work together to find past and present successes and use these successes as building block(s) to address and tackle life's challenges in a new way. Successes are areas in your life related to positive thinking or are having positive impact, such as skill oriented strengths, supports, resources, and any conveniences you already possess.

I utilize a comprehensive health inventory to identify your strengths and successes touching on physical health, social supports, emotional resilience, spiritual outlook, vocational/financial, and intellectual/giftedness. Positive thinking or learned optimism is about learning a new perspective.

Instead of projecting what can go wrong, you are encouraged to focus on what can go right – since it is all speculation anyway. Key questions are “What can I learn from this?” and “What good can come from this?” In this way, a negative situation is not a total defeat – it’s a temporary setback, a learning experience.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT is a solution-focused approach oriented toward solving problems and learning new skills. The goal is to help people get better and stay better. Here, we work together as a team to identify and solve problems and change thinking and thought patterns, emotional responses, and behavior(s). CBT can be adapted to my work with children, adolescents, couples, and families and applied when dealing with a host of everyday challenges to severe disorders.

CBT's effectiveness has been demonstrated in thousands of clinical trials. Research has demonstrated that CBT is the most effective form of treatment for several psychological problems, including but not limited to depression and many forms of anxiety including panic disorder, phobias, generalized anxiety disorder, and obsessions compulsions.

Psychodynamic Therapy

Our therapeutic relationship is central to psychodynamic therapy. It helps demonstrate how you interact with friends and loved ones while ultimately helping me to understand how you relate to others and the world around you, illuminating the way(s) early-life relationships affect and shape your current-day dynamics.

We take an intimate look at how interpersonal relationships can help you to see your part in today's relationship patterns with a goal to empower you to transform those dynamics.

This will enable us to determine the steps needed to change those patterns. Patterns related to stress/distress avoidance and the development of defense mechanisms in order to cope with life.

The psychodynamic approach enables me to help you change relationships with authority figures, work and work associates, family, and personal/leisure time/activities enabling you to be happier and lead a more fulfilling life.

Marriage and Family Therapy

If you think about it, there has never been a marriage or family dynamic like yours. We all bring our own set of experiences, strengths, weaknesses, hopes, and dreams to our marriage and family. Marriage and Family therapy is solution-oriented and specific, with attainable goals designed with the end "in mind" - from the start. The goal here is to provide resolution and a plan-of-action to support forward movement and growth well beyond therapy.

I will review everyone's mindset toward marriage and family, their well-being, social supports, and finances. I work with remarriages and the blending of families as most likely, you are dealing with a set of unique challenges.

A major component is the exploration of the meaning of love, how you receive love, how you give love, your attitude and adaptability about relationships, marriage, and family, and the communication within the marital/family system, gender understanding and beliefs, conflict/resolution processes, and spirituality within the couple and/or family.

Addictions Counseling

I help you set achievable and empowering short-term goals as you address your addiction. I am extremely supportive and help you deal with all areas of your addiction and the addictive process. Therapy and the therapeutic process provide a strong supplemental support, if you are also attending a self-help group.

Once sobriety is achieved, I help you form adaptive skills that can be developed as you work to regain physical and emotional health. While you employ new coping skills we explore the source/cause of your addiction to help you to move forward, deal with the recovery process, and sustain long-term recovery.

Together, we work on setting short-term and long-term goals that include rebuilding damaged relationships, accepting responsibility for actions, harm reduction, and releasing guilt. I work with and address all types of addictions as well as those who are negatively affected by a loved one who is struggling or has an addiction. With therapy, it is more likely to attain abstinence from addiction, continue on in the recovery process, and maintain long-term recovery.

Holistic Therapy Theory

Holistic therapy is an integrative approach focusing on the relationship between three components of you as a whole body/entity with the belief that your consciousness is not housed in any one part of your body but is an integration of these components; mind, body, and spirit. Also, known as the connections between your emotions, thoughts, physical experiences, and spiritual understandings.

We work together to increase your understanding and ability to address the ways issues in one aspect/area of you; can lead to concerns in other areas of you, as a result of becoming better attuned to your entire awareness. This can often promote not only greater self-awareness but greater self-esteem, and self-acceptance - acceptance of the self that is within you. One of the goals is to realize that these components work together in harmony to support typical daily functioning.

In order to develop increased awareness we work to help you accept the present moment—who you are and where you are. I provide support helping you to truly accept what is going on within you. Once this acceptance is achieved, you may be able to let go of your own resistance, which can further allow you to relax and release any fears. Acceptance and relaxation are important components.

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