Individual Therapy
I specialize in individual therapy for adults. My clients come to therapy for a number of reasons, including:
Anxiety and stress
Relationship or marital problems
Lack of motivation or feeling unfulfilled
Difficulties making important life decisions
Experience of a traumatic expeirence
Grief
General unexplained depression, anxiety, or panic attacks
Difficulties adjusting to major life transitions such as starting a new relationship or marriage, having a child or getting a new job
Anger
What to Expect
I understand that reaching out for help is difficult, and even more so if you are new to therapy. My goal is to outline the way I approach the therapy process. This will help you understand what you can expect from our first phone call to the final session. Of course, each person and situation is unique, and so it is important to understand that this process varies from person-to-person.
It is really important to me to speak to potential clients prior to the first session for a few reasons. First, it gives you the opportunity to ask any questions you have about my training, background, style, approach to therapy, and fees. Second, it gives me an opportunity to start to get to know you and what is going on in your life that has you thinking about therapy. Usually we can accomplish all of this in about 10 minutes. If at the end of the phone consultation we determine that I am a good fit for your needs, we will set up the first visit. If not, I am happy to work with you to find someone who is a better fit.
Your first visit will be a 45-minute appointment. The focus of this session will be exploring the reasons you are seeking therapy, current symptoms, and relevant history. This tends to be a lot of information to cover in one visit, and so we focus more on more on the highlights and big picture. Sessions are typically weekly, but may be more or less often depending upon your specific needs.
Afterwards, we develop a plan together. This usually includes setting short- and long-term goals, identifying the strategies and techniques we will be using to help you reach your goals, and estimating the length of treatment. We’ll spend our sessions addressing those goals and creating new ones for anything that comes up in the course of therapy. Sessions are also kept open to allow for more recent or time-pressing concerns that may have arisen since we last met.
When we get to the point that you feel you have met your goals, we will start to discuss termination. Termination sounds like a scary word, but all it really means is that you are doing well and no longer need therapy! This discussion happens well before we actually end therapy to give adequate time to process and prepare. I like to titrate therapy so it is not ended abruptly. What this means is we will reducing sessions from weekly to biweekly, and subsequently monthly, sessions. It also includes scheduling “booster” sessions to make sure things continue to go well, review skills learned in therapy, or resume therapy if needed.
How Long Does Therapy Last?
The length of therapy varies by person. Simple, acute problems can be addressed over the course of 3-4 months, while more complex, chronic problems may require a much longer course of therapy.
All clients differ in how they respond to therapy because we all have our own stories, burdens, and worries. Some start to feel better after a single session simply because they’ve been waiting so long to tell someone about their struggles, but for others it is a longer process. Like all things in life, progress is not a straight line. You will have weeks where you feel great, and others where it seems like we take a step back. That is ok, what’s most important is that we keep working at it. I am confident that over time you will begin to feel happier, more empowered, and better able to cope with life’s setbacks.