Psychotherapy is a process in which a client, with the help of a skilled therapist, embarks on a journey of discovery, acceptance and action in a safe environment. Psychotherapy entails active involvement, honesty and openness in order to change thoughts, feelings and behavior. Participation in therapy can result in a number of benefits. These benefits include improving interpersonal relationships and resolution of specific concerns such as grief and loss, life transitions, anxiety, chronic pain, self-esteem and family of origin issues. Working toward these benefits will bring a better quality of life. I will choose from a variety of techniques to assist in this exploration in a close and respectful manner.  

Some of these techniques are:

• guided imagery
• experiential techniques that assist the client in being with their feeling and thoughts in the moment
• dream work
• dialogue process
• mindfulness processes
• breathing techniques
• body oriented psychotherapy
• sandplay
• contemplative approaches
• respectful and focused talk
• EMDR

Couples Work

Couples come to therapy because their relationship is not measuring up to their expectations. They are generally disconnected from the more positive feelings they had for each other early in their lives together. Individuals in a relationship, generally learn more about themselves because they are more intensely
challenged to look at their motives and actions while in the presence of others. Relationships are a path to growth.

In couple's therapy, each person is encouraged to accept oneself and their partner (who is not like them).  Clients learn to understand their motivations, feelings, thoughts and actions. They learn to tolerate their strong feelings and to practice caring for them. Each partner will also be encouraged to learn more about their partner and to acknowledge and accept their partner's feelings.  Both individuals learn to take 100% responsibility for their experience and reactions by refraining from blame, criticism and projection. By seeing more than one's dislikes and by focusing on the whole person, partners learn to cherish and respect themselves and their partners. Since research suggests that up to 60% of disagreements and conflicts in relationship are never eliminated and resolved, the goal is to assist couples in learning how to manage their conflicts in healthier and more respectful ways.  Each individual is helped to own their experience, reactions and to express their needs and desires to their partner in more effective ways.  

Some effective methods for working with couples I may employ include: 

• building a common vision for a healthy relationship
• deep listening
• couples dialogue and other effective communication techniques
• de-escalation and self-soothing techniques
• empathy building
• taking back projections
• learning to respect the temperament and style of the partner
• understanding the deeper issues and dreams of the partner
• deconstructing the outer issues to uncover the deeper process

Family Work 

Families are made up of individuals, each who may have a different agenda. Seen from a system's approach, the goal of family work is to reveal the connections between these agendas and to help the family understand how each member contributes to the "problem" and the solution. As individuals change their behaviors, the system changes and can function in a healthier manner. We view the family as a whole, instead of looking at one person as the cause of the dysfunction.  

Some techniques I may employ in working with families include:         

• Sculpting the problem
• Encouraging members to talk honestly and directly to one another
• Diagnosing triangulation and breaking the pattern
• Many of the techniques used in working with couples can be employed in working with family systems