I provide depth psychotherapy to adults and couples. Clients describe me as warm, direct, and active. My therapeutic orientation is eclectic and I draw from psychodynamic, relational, attachment-based, gestalt, and somatic psychotherapy practices (see below). I also have advanced training in Emotionaly Focused Therapy for couples (EFT/EFCT) including core skills (2nd level) and numerous hours of consultation.
The foundation of my training is psychodynamic and psychoanalytic. That means I listen for how the unconscious mind can work to group experiences and form behavior patterns without our realizing it, which can limit what is possible in our daily lives. The mind works hard to protect us from the stress and trauma of past experiences -- especially from our younger, more formative years. I utilize psychoanalytic approaches by working with patients to construct ("analyze") a more conscious narrative to all the unconscious beliefs working in the background.
The relational aspect of my work means that I treat our relationship -- the therapeutic one -- as a real relationship that also relates to your other relationships through similarities and contrasts. In this way, the client and the psychotherapist work together in spontaneous ways to examine the impact of being two unique humans and to uncover how I (the therapist) can best support you based on those interactions together. Through safe and honest conversations, we shape the work to fit your needs best. In this way we acknowledge that the "work" is always in progress.
Focusing on attachment, I am interested in how you have experienced safety and flexibility (or not) in your relationships, and how you may approach relationships based on past experiences that shaped you, especially with caregivers. These attachment patterns tend to emerge again and again through experiences of fear, avoidance, and anxiety. Some attachment patterns can produce barriers to having fulfilling experiences in relationships today.
areas of specialty
- depression
- anxiety
- trauma
- boundaries
- anger
- narcissism
- family issues
- relationships
- life transitions
- emotional regulation
- passive aggression
- intergenerational trauma
- multi-ethnic, multi-racial identification