Hello, I am Dr. Marcus Cherry, but you can call me Marcus if you like. I am a licensed psychologist who will strive to connect with you, your experiences, and your emotions. As we explore your life together, we will seek to develop your self-knowledge by examining your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors as well as the reasons behind them. We will determine some of your strengths and stumbling blocks and use these strengths to form healthier ways of addressing challenges in your life. As a therapist, I believe we each have a story and that it is our deepest desire to know that if we share all of our story, we will be heard, seen, understood, and belong. Perhaps, like me, you have struggled with masking or being a chameleon just to fit in, yet still feel like you do not belong. Maybe you have collapsed under the weight of tearing yourself down with shame and judgement, but you make every effort to treat others with kindness and respect. Or perhaps, you have learned how to get along with everyone but keep them all at arm’s length because it is better not to trust anyone. No matter your story, your struggles, your pain, or your fears I want to help you feel understood and show you that you matter.
For clients who choose to work with me, in our first full session we will meet for one hour via video conferencing. This session is meant primarily to be introduction and information gathering with a brief administrative piece. In a typical first session we usually spend the first two minutes reviewing policies and practices. The next 10 to 15 minutes is where we get to know each other by talking about who we each are and sharing some of the things about us that feel most important. The largest portion of the session, about 30 to 40 minutes, we focus on the story of your life and what part of it led you to therapy. In the final minutes of the session, we outline a draft of an action plan which we typically revisit in the next session and may further refine over time.
Some of my strengths include being genuine, compassionate, flexible and a good listener. Using these aspects, I enjoy creating a warm collaborative environment that is both accessible and effective. I think my favorite feedback from clients captures this best. My clients will often say something like, “Our sessions don’t feel like work, instead it feels like a conversation with a good friend, but then I learn something new about myself or start to see things change.”
In this approach, I help clients explore their beliefs about themselves, other people, and how they interact with others. We'll examine how these beliefs affect their behavior and emotions then develop strategies to improve their overall well-being.
I believe our emotions are powerful and important but sometimes they can become overwhelming or confusing. In this approach, I empower clients to feel and embrace all of their emotions rather than avoid them or bottle them up until they burst.
When we are struggling it can be hard to find support. Instead of getting help, often we are met with judgement, guilt, or even shame. I use compassion focused techniques to help clients break free from the burden of never feeling "good enough" and learn how to take a nonjudgmental supportive approach to promote healing and growth