Theoretical Foundations

Different modalities may be incorporated
throughout a participant’s course of treatment.

Is your life stressful, worrisome and not satisfying? Are your experiences or sense of identity not matching up with how you want to experience yourself in the world? A Client-Centered approach allows you to explore and put to use the tools that support emotional healing, increase self-awareness and promote personal growth.

Want to focus on, understand and find solutions to a problem sooner rather than later? Solution-focused therapy is shorter in duration and gets straight to the point. Together, we’ll explore your stressors and identify steps to arrive at your desired outcomes.

Some individuals are totally unaware of their own positive attributes, abilities, interests and values. You may have gifts or special qualities that have never been acknowledged or utilized but make you unique and capable of achieving happiness and success. Let’s take a look to identify the strengths you possess, empower you to utilize them and celebrate your true identity. With a clearer view of what you have to offer, you can work towards personal growth, increase your sense of pride and self-esteem.

You’ve got a past, a story. Do you know it? Is it weighing you down and causing you to see yourself in a negative light? Feeling discouraged or limited because of it? Though it has an impact on your life, your past is not your present and doesn’t have to be your future. You are the author of your own story. Narrative therapy is an opportunity to explore your journey and potentially gain a new lens through which to view your life, with more self-compassion, a new sense of identity and feelings of empowerment.

Negative thinking and self-defeating behaviors getting in the way of your success? Learning and practicing healthier ways to respond to disappointments, life stressors, and uncomfortable emotions can increase desirable outcomes in your life.

Facing circumstances that make it challenging to get ahead? ‘Glass ceilings,’ ‘shut doors’ or ‘roadblocks’ that have caused you to feel disregarded, looked over or ‘locked out’? Have your experiences promoted feelings of hopelessness and powerlessness despite a desire to contribute, grow and live your best life? I offer you a safe place to process your experiences, to feel heard, understood, valued and supported to explore your possibilities in the face of hurtful barriers.

Can you identify the source of the emotional and social challenges you may be experiencing? Childhood stressors that are suppressed or ‘bottled up’ can result in unresolved, emotional pain, confusion, and both internal and interpersonal conflict. Psychodynamic therapy provides an opportunity to discover how past experiences and unconscious feelings impact behavior in the present.

The impact of trauma on one’s wellbeing can be life-changing, causing emotional, mental and physical pain, and social impairment. Underlying anxiety, depression, fear and even anger that goes unaddressed can make it difficult to experience joy in daily living, healthy relationships and adequacy in social functioning. Trauma-informed therapy educates, empowers and reduces the impact of trauma. During therapy sessions, increased understanding, natural supports, coping skills and social functioning are improved while the ability to trust again, experience healthy relationships and feel safe again is increased.

While medication management is an option to treat more severe mental health symptoms, it is not a cure-all or immediate recommendation in most therapy cases. Medication often works better in conjunction with learned coping and social skills, and is treated as a last resort when other treatment efforts alone have been determined ineffective. In the event that medication seems to be an appropriate addition for treatment, with your consent, you’ll be referred to your doctor, psychiatrist or other community-based provider so that you can explore your options.