As an experienced therapist at Therapy2Change, it is my professional mission to ensure that you have the best relationships possible, which means feeling connected to those in your community and career, and maintaining strong relationships with your family and friends. You might be someone who says “yes” too often and becomes overwhelmed easily, or you might even shut down to avoid conflict in your relationships but then wind up feeling lonely—therapy with me can be your first step to turn around those habits and begin to make positive changes.
I work with individuals, couples and groups depending upon your specific needs. No matter the type of therapy you choose, you are unique and my work with you will be tailored to your individual situation.
Individual Therapy:
I want to hear your story! That’s the first order of business—I want to know what has been or currently is causing you emotional distress and what you are hoping to achieve through therapy.
At first, I’ll mostly just listen to get a sense of what you’ve been through and what steps you may need to take to start moving forward in your life. Then, as we get to know each other, we’ll delve deeper. I’ll make observations and reflect on what I see and hear, and then offer connections that may be helpful for you to hear and learn. My goal is to offer new ideas that will challenge you in ways that will inspire you to try new things and take big steps.
Ultimately, I will follow your lead to ascertain the best working approach for you. This may frustrate you a little—you might be thinking, Why can’t you just tell me what to do right now? That would certainly be an easier approach, but not as helpful as you’d think. The most important step to take is to learn how to remove the blocks that keep you from having the life that you want. If you’ve never been to therapy before, it is a unique experience, and the most important “self-care” step to take. You will begin to understand yourself in surprising and new ways, and with this knowledge you can take ownership and make better decisions.
Couples Counseling:
My work with couples is very interactive and collaborative. We will work to understand the frustrating and often painful cycle you go through, the history of your relationship, and what inspired you to begin counseling now. We will determine whether both partners are motivated to continue the relationship. If so, we will figure out what you are willing to give and what you hope to achieve. We will create goals for the relationship, which often include several individual goals as well—then we can discover why they are so tough to achieve and come up with solutions that are right for both of you for a positive future.
The real beauty of couples counseling is the work is done in real time—we can examine the dynamics of your partnership right in the consulting room. When a communication breakdown happens in front of an audience (your therapist), the emotions are very visible and can be better understood with someone to help guide you through them—then we can tweak those certain behaviors and habits to help prevent future conflict.
As appropriate, I’ll suggest individual sessions in combination with couples sessions if I believe it will benefit both you and the relationship. This is different from individual therapy; these sessions are designed for each partner to have a place to express things confidentially to help you or your partner understand personal issues and how they affect the relationship. However, this is usually done with your partner as a witness in couples therapy.
Group Therapy:
Group therapy is a laboratory for experimentation of social interactions that you can take to the real world! The goal of the group is to help you gain the skills to speak up for yourself, listen more thoughtfully and speak directly to others more effectively. I will connect different people in the group to each other depending upon their interactions at hand. This form of therapy helps foster deeper relationships within the group so that you can learn to have deeper relationships in your private life. I am here to help you try new communication skills and to ensure everyone has a chance to share and listen.
I want to help you create stronger connections to the people around you and support you in living the life that you want. If you think I’m the therapist for you, contact me for a free 20-minute phone consultation at 917-873-0506 or contact me. My practice is currently conducted via Telehealth.