Psychotherapy

There is a lot that goes into the shaping of a life. We are the culmination of our experiences, gifts, triumphs and disappointments, relationships, and all that has yet to come.

Many people participate in psychotherapy as the result of a crisis, challenge, or life transition. They have become uncomfortable and want to feel better. Ultimately, most life issues are transient, and we experience relief with time. We can temporarily solve a problem and feel better as a result. This is what we call relief. The unfortunate result of relief is that it is often a temporary solution, and an unfulfilling compromise with oneself.

Transformation is the process through which we address the route of the problem to shift our lives in a more holistic and lasting way. Sometimes we may need to go backwards to go forward. When we engage in true self-discovery, we can see how faulty learning during earlier life has led us down the path of self-defeating behavior and maladaptive coping. When we are ready to challenge our positions and habits that no longer serve us, we are free to discover something better that is available to us.

Our continuous processing of our experience creates the narrative of our relationship to the world around us. In the absence of new information, we create stories. When we repeat these stories often enough, they become our truths.

Narratives of mistrust, scarcity and disappointment create protective habits that often separate us from opportunities for success and gratifying relationships. Depression, anxiety and relationship problems often result from a consistent commitment to a narrative that leaves us unfulfilled. Some of us believe that we are incapable of happiness. Others of us believe that we are undeserving. Psychotherapy is an opportunity for self-examination. Often, what we want is closer than we have allowed ourselves to imagine.

My personal perspective on psychotherapy is that my clients and I are creating a working alliance toward the goal of building greater self-acceptance and a more fulfilling life. This could mean focusing on one specific issue, or focusing on the quality of one’s life as a whole. We are creating an environment conducive to vulnerability as I believe the process is more effective when we can operate at greater depth. This is the place where you come to have conversations that you will not likely be having with anyone else. My unique blending of diverse interventions is meant to provide a patient experience that is both client-centered and appropriately challenging.