My Approach
Have you been to therapy before, but just didn’t feel a connection? Don’t worry, it happens. Therapy is incredibly personal and you have have to feel right about the person you are sharing your life details with.
Find the Best Connection
It’s important to feel a connection to the theories a particular therapist practices. This is your life, and you get a say! It’s okay to search until you find one that makes you say “yes!” when reading about their theories and work. Don’t be passive and say “oh okay, I guess that could work for me.” If you have any questions about these theories or the way I work please ask!
Here is some information about the theories that I incorporate. If these words don’t resonate with you, that’s okay, I am happy to talk with you about what didn’t fit and why and if we truly aren’t a fit I will help you find someone who is. I am not in this business to make money off of seeing people once and never again; I want you to get what you need, want, and deserve.
Searching for What Is Missing
You may have heard of Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs in school, but what does that mean to you? Well, first it means that it is perfectly normal to feel like something is missing even though you have a home, a job, and food to eat. It is an actual need to be loved a feel a sense of belonging and in no way makes you greedy or selfish or mean that you will never be happy.
It also means that if you are worried about keeping your job or your home, you won’t be concerned with finding friends or a love interest. On the other hand, it means that if you have a job, home, and good friends, you might start to wonder what else there is and be puzzled at what is missing. Many people come to therapy wanting to work on finding love or true belonging or dealing with low self-esteem and wanting to raise their confidence.
Maybe you have all of that but still feel like something is missing? You could be at the self actualization phase and are trying to find what you are most passionate about and how you can most make an impact in this world, I would love to help you figure that out! Or maybe all of this is nice but you have been too down in the dumps to even think or worry about any of it for as long as you can remember. That’s okay too. I’ll come sit with you and together we will figure out what’s going on and get you out of that hole you’ve been in for far too long.
Coping Skills
Talking about yourself is great, but what about some actual coping skills? We will use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (or CBT) to analyze how your thoughts might be affecting your mood.
This is an area you can have some takeaway from your counseling sessions. We can go as deep into this as you like. There are books and workbooks, worksheets and homework that will help you learn to control your thoughts and start feeling better.
I will help you analyze your thoughts and emotions, and come up with tricks and coping mechanisms that will help you feel better.
Mindfulness
Are you present in your own life? How much of your mental energy is spent thinking about the past or worried about the future? Here are some things to consider…
- Do you lay in bed at night replaying all of your mistakes?
- Have you gotten so good at multitasking that your mind moves onto the next task before you have actually finished the current one?
- Does your partner or children complain that you don’t pay attention to them or are not focused on them?
Mindfulness has so many benefits and can be used in so many ways, there isn’t a good simple explanation. I will help you find ways of incorporating this into your life in a way that feels right for you. Follow me on social media for mindful Monday where I give tips each week!