Katarina Matolek
Hello there! Are you seeking empowerment, fulfillment, or healing from past trauma? I provide a safe space to support you on a journey of self-discovery. I believe our minds, bodies, spirits, and relationships are interconnected, and I address each facet to help you emerge holistically. My therapeutic style draws from various approaches, including Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), attachment therapy, and Brainspotting (BSP). I value the relational aspect of psychotherapy, and through guided questions, you will be invited to find answers that enhance your sense of self and deepen your connection with yourself and others. I hold a CA license to practice psychotherapy as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) #105889. In CA.
My therapeutic style draws from various approaches, including Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), attachment therapy approach, and Brainspotting (BSP).
First session
In our first session together, we'll start with brief introductions, then dive into the specific challenges you're facing and the goals you hope to set for yourself. This will help me create a tailored plan for us to work through in follow-up sessions.
Strengths
Whatever your needs, no matter your age or personal story, it would be an honor to help you heal and discover how to thrive. I see myself as your ally, ready to accompany you throughout your journey. My aim is to provide a safe, empathetic environment where we can collaborate to explore your inner self, articulate your thoughts, and embrace the full range of your emotions, thoughts, and bodily sensations.
Ideal clients
I offer my adult clients a range of practical tools and exercises to practice their newly learned skills between our sessions. This ongoing support helps them build confidence and become more independent as they apply what they've learned in real-life situations. Witnessing their growth, progress, and willingness to pursue new opportunities is profoundly rewarding. Each step they take toward their goals brings me immense joy and reaffirms the value of our collaborative work.
Treatment methods
Attachment-based
Our early experiences with our primary caregivers profoundly shape the adults we become. Attachment-based psychotherapy aims to address the negative effects of these early experiences and strengthen our ability to form secure relationships and make positive choices in life. The therapist begins by building a supportive therapeutic relationship with the client to foster security. Within this relationship, the therapist helps the client express and explore emotions, perceptions, and behaviors that may have been suppressed in past relationships. This process helps the client communicate more openly and authentically, leading to greater emotional resilience and more constructive ways of thinking and behaving in daily life.
Brainspotting
Brainspotting therapy is an alternative therapy that uses specific points in a person’s visual field to help process trauma stored in the subcortical brain. This part of the brain controls emotion, consciousness, and learning. In 2003, David Grand, PhD, discovered this type of therapy as an extension of his work in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) after noticing a client become "stuck" in a particular spot. Observing the client delve more deeply than ever while in that spot led to the birth of Brainspotting. One of the purported advantages of Brainspotting therapy over EMDR is that individuals do not need to “relive” the trauma to release it from the body.
EMDR
EMDR therapy involves working through eight phases, all aimed at maximizing the effectiveness of the treatment: 1. Gathering history and planning treatment: The therapist reviews the client's history and determines which traumatic memories to address. 2. Preparation: Ensuring the client has coping strategies to manage emotional distress effectively. 3. Assessment: Identifying the specific visual imagery associated with the memory, negative self-beliefs, and the associated emotions and physical sensations. 4. Desensitization: Focusing on the client's distressing images, thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations during EMDR processing with bilateral stimulation, often side-to-side eye movements. 5. Installation: Recognizing and reinforcing positive beliefs to replace the client's original negative ones. 6. Body scan: Asking the client to recall the memory and observe any remaining bodily tension. 7. Closure: Restoring the client to a state of balance so they leave each session feeling better than when they arrived. 8. Reevaluation: At the start of subsequent sessions, the therapist assesses progress and confirms that the positive results have been sustained. Throughout these phases, clients not only process their traumatic memories but also cultivate their internal strengths, building resilience against future stress.
Grief Therapy
Grief therapy provides professional support to help individuals navigate the complex emotions and stages that follow a loss. People experience grief in unique ways, but the commonly recognized stages include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Additionally, finding meaning is a crucial part of the grieving process. Recognize that there's no universal path through grief. Each person experiences it differently, with reactions ranging from shock and disbelief to anxiety and periods of sadness. Physical effects, such as loss of appetite and sleep disturbances, are also common during this time.
Psychodynamic
I recently came across fascinating new research published by the American Psychological Association, which suggests that psychodynamic psychotherapy can effectively treat a wide range of mental health symptoms, including depression, anxiety, panic, and stress-related physical ailments. What's more, the benefits of this therapy seem to persist even after treatment ends. Psychodynamic therapy strongly emphasizes exploring the psychological roots of emotional suffering. It involves self-reflection and self-examination, using the therapeutic relationship to uncover problematic patterns in the patient’s relationships. The ultimate goal of this therapy is not only to alleviate the most obvious symptoms but also to help individuals lead healthier and more fulfilling lives.
Location
Virtual sessions
In-person sessions1460 7th St, Santa Monica, CA 90401, Suite 306
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Licensed in
- CaliforniaLicense 105889