Areas of Focus
MENTAL HEALTH & WELL-BEING
Mental health symptoms can impact you in unexpected ways. You might feel like you cannot control these symptoms and that they affect your day to day functioning. Whether you are experiencing depression, anxiety, panic, post-traumatic stress or bipolar disorder, you can utilize psychotherapy to understand and address these issues. Avoiding negative thoughts, fear or inactivity may further intensify the impact these symptoms have on your life and your relationship with yourself. Starting psychotherapy can assist in healing and recovery. We can work together to identity what barriers you have faced when trying to address mental health symptoms and begin defining what well-being means to you. In addition, I am able to coordinate care with your psychiatrist or medical provider as needed.
INTERPERSONAL CHALLENGES
Our communication styles, emotions and beliefs about relationships may impact how we relate to others. If you are hoping to address relationships or communication issues in therapy, we will work together to better understand your interpersonal needs. Sometimes interacting with others may feel anxiety provoking or uncomfortable. You may find it difficult to take care of yourself while in a relationship or express your thoughts or feelings to others. I can support you in exploring interpersonal issues including understanding yourself in relationships, regulating emotions during interactions, setting boundaries, communicating effectively, and trust and safety issues. Therapy sessions can be a safe space to discuss these topics and to learn methods of coping with these interpersonal challenges.
EMERGING ADULTHOOD
Managing the transitions and new experiences of early adulthood can be challenging and sometimes confusing. You may be facing important decisions related to navigating new relationships, work, academic goals and family dynamics. During this stage in your life you may also be presented with new opportunities or are exploring unique possibilities for your future. Your experiences may have led you to wanting to learn more about yourself, your feelings and thoughts. In therapy, I can support you in understanding the transitions you may be experiencing as you navigate emerging adulthood and explore effective ways of responding to these experiences.
Methods
COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY
Our beliefs about ourselves, others and our surroundings can significantly impact our mood and functioning. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, highlights how our thoughts, moods and behaviors are interrelated. As we engage with unhelpful thoughts about ourselves or others, such as judgmental thoughts, black and white thoughts or negative predictions, we may make choices that are influenced by these thoughts. Behaviors such as avoiding responsibilities or over-exerting oneself can have consequences that can truly decrease a person’s quality of life and functioning. Utilizing components of CBT during our time in therapy, I will support you in developing adaptive beliefs and behavioral responses to support you in coping with challenges you may be facing.
DIALECTICAL BEHAVIOR THERAPY
Dialectical Behavior Therapy, or DBT, can help you incorporate new effective coping methods to address issues in various areas of your life. You may experience heightened emotions when faced with a stressor and respond by engaging in harmful behaviors. Or you may have noticed a pattern of destructive thoughts or behaviors in your relationships. Participating in DBT oriented therapy can help you move toward behavioral change using a non-judgemental approach while learning emotion regulation, distress tolerance, interpersonal effectiveness and mindfulness skills. We can discuss the details of this treatment approach as we begin identifying how you currently respond to stressors or emotions and how you would like to build coping skills that align with your goals. If you are interested in participating in a fully adherent DBT program I will support you in finding a DBT group to participate in.
MINDFULNESS
When we worry about the future or have difficulty stopping harmful thoughts about the past, we may find it difficult to focus on the present moment. Mindfulness techniques help train the mind to shift its focus to the present moment while nonjudgmentally observing one’s moment to moment experience. During our sessions I can support you in learning mindfulness techniques to help you improve your awareness of the present moment, decrease judgments about yourself or others and function more effectively as your are trying to complete your day to day tasks. This set of coping tools can assist in managing difficult emotions, navigating interactions with others and help improve your ability to manage unhelpful thoughts about the past or future.