LCSW, 8 years of experience
I am Jeff, like it says on this page. I love games of all kinds and dogs of all kinds. I sit crosslegged on chairs when I can and enjoy kneading dough for baking. I'm verbose and use words as if they were legos. I have worked in hospitals, community mental health centers, a retirement home and now I am content to be in private practice. I have experience with crises, sudden life transitions and choices that seem impossible to come back from. I'm familiar with being awkward and have experience being the outcast. I became a therapist because there were many times earlier in my life where I needed support and guidance from someone who could understand me without being judgmental or controlling. Being a strange enough person already, I never quite found someone empathetic towards my situation until meeting my first therapist - a literally life changing experience. Even with almost 10 years as a therapist, I'm certainly not claiming that I'll change your life as a guarantee just because of who I am - a therapist helped me see that so much change came about by my own efforts over the years, change that you can also be empowered to pursue. I am the sort of person that will work in your interest, work for your health when it feels like illness gets in the way. If you happen to be someone or know someone that often puts others before themselves at the expense of wants and needs for themselves, then you may know me pretty well already. Transparently, I am not using AI in any form to write anything you read here about myself or my methods.
It is so important to initially feel at least a little comfortable with a therapist you choose. I'll ask you how you would like to be addressed and answer any initial questions you have during a warm welcome to working with me. I'll make sure to touch on what has and has not been helpful for yourself from any past mental health treatment courses to better understand what it is you need from a helping professional. Our first session will include as much or as little small talk as you would like. We can banter a bit first or get straight to the task at hand with a detailed assessment of everything I need to best facilitate your path for change, including a background history of your life and circumstances so far. We will make sure to solidify our initial plan of action, which is subject to change based on your needs and wants, and identify a preferred format for sessions should you have one.
I'm not the therapist for everyone; I'm the therapist I would have wanted when some patience and care was needed for navigating painful or uncertain times earlier in life. My style is best suited for clients with a history of being bullied, being left out, being blamed for other's problems. I deal with big ideas and small details within life stories from a powerful childhood experience to a daily quirk you want to change. If you need a listening ear and sounding board that offers a fresh perspective, you have come to the right place! In treating the whole person, I look at individuals that have felt ostracized from society largely due to their thought process or not feeling heard by others. I will help you question your biases, assumptions and feelings towards what your problems are in your life as you see them. My sessions will contain a lot of laughter (hopefully from both of us) because our time together will be clearly well spent if we can use some humor in navigating problems and solutions alike. This is not because anything in your history or current circumstances is necessarily funny, but because I believe the therapeutic process is profound and enhanced once there is the ability to laugh at yourself from a place of joy. I will support you unconditionally, which also means I will let you know of my sincere insight on your situation when needed. Are we going too fast? I'll check in with your impressions on our pacing. Too slow? Help me understand what will get us unstuck and moving again on your journey. I'd describe my overall style as "gentle" in approach. This means you will have a plush cushion to sit on in session with me, but we will go on a wild adventure once you feel ready. I have good results working with clients whom have taken responsibility in their own healing and actually choose to swap the cushion for a pair of trail shoes.
When you already don't fit in with the crowd and finally take the time, effort and money to seek support from a professional, it is a bigger risk for that type of person and I want to recognize that. I want to be respectful of your willingness to sit with some potentially difficult parts of your past or present by reciprocating with my own effort. As you read all of this, written by my own hand with authenticity, I invite you to notice how you feel deep down - if I seem like someone you'd like to meet, please choose a time in my calendar or read on. I primarily focus on adults, young and seasoned alike, with a history of isolation, difficulty socializing and men or male identifying individuals of color even more so. I give special attention to neurodiverse clients (ADHD, high masking autism) during any life stage whether this was a recent diagnosis, a piece of childhood history or perhaps a growing suspicion and interest for your own life. This subset of people are also my focus because these have been clients whom have sought me out for clear reasons or felt comfortable in approaching me. Clients that already have some experience with receiving therapy usually benefit even more from my style - I enjoy working with someone who knows there's work to be done and has the bravery to ask for more from their therapist. Ideally, you should ask me questions - hard questions about your own well being that you want hard answers for. That is when I can best facilitate healing by guiding you towards even better questions. So, I like to change a client's mind about what is possible for them when working with a therapist who will meet you exactly where you are. Where ever you are in your life right now, I believe there is always time to reflect on and improve your overall well-being, whenever needed and truly desired. When do you set aside time for yourself? When was the last time you really asked yourself "What do I want from my life?" "Who do I want to be?" How often do you hesitate in action or ruminate over a mistake you made yesterday, or even last year? What is keeping you from living the type of life that you want for yourself and how do those obstacles dictate your everyday choices? If you've recently asked yourself any of these questions above, let's have a talk about how curiosity can vastly improve your impression of life.
Unconditional positive regard is a core tenet of my practice and how I treat all of my clients. Being all ears to your experience first before offering anything of my own is important. I am always on your side, no matter what has happened in your past or what circumstances you find yourself in while seeking support. This is one human being supporting another, full stop.
Finding the means to work within our own minds as they are and appreciating how your own thoughts or feelings can enable you to tackle difficulties standing in your way rather than avoiding them should be rewarding - this is much of what I have worked on with clients feeling out of control of their lives. ACT allows you to break free of black and white thinking with emphasis on mindfulness, the here and now. You are not your thoughts or your emotions - we can discover and cultivate that true self with a vision for living your best life.
Mindfulness as a diffuse concept has become part of many treatments I employ, including portions of ACT, DBT and somatic therapy. I like to teach meditation in a way that is immediately helpful and foundational for practicing effective means of self discovery via non-judgmental exploration. Life is always happening in the present - that is all there is. In my experience, mindfulness based practices, when well taught, can elevate therapy from what only seems like talking to a valuable, life enhancing commitment.
Sometimes problems are clear cut and we know what we're dealing with, which is where directed questioning and planning come in. Practicality, pragmatism and what we can work on to improve your situation right now is so important to me. Whether it's a job, someone in your life or just struggling to come up with a plan to confront your issue, we will work together in using optimism to see you through the specifics.
We all struggle with deciding between one thing and another, or even conceptualizing the choices in front of us as mutable, changeable. Making a decision is often more about what hardship you can accept over the immediate benefit of say, going back to school, switching jobs, leaving a relationship. Do not feel as though individualized choices should only be solved individually - you can ask for help as well!