New to Grow
Starting therapy can feel vulnerable. Whether you're feeling anxious, disconnected, grieving, overwhelmed, or navigating a major life transition, you don't have to figure it out alone. My name is Derik, and I'm a licensed clinical social worker with over 13 years of experience. Over my career I've worked with individuals, adolescents, families, couples, and alternative relationship structures. I specialize in issues surrounding anxiety, depression, grief, and relationship concerns. My style blends acceptance and action. I believe people are most capable of making positive changes when they feel truly understood.
In our first session together, here's what you can expect
In our first session, my priority is understanding what it is that brought you to therapy, what you're hoping to gain from the experience, and how I can be of the most service. I believe each session should find a balance between validation and change. I want you to feel heard, understood, and seen so we can find ways to effect positive change and help you reach your goals in therapy. Therapy isn't magic, and I will always take time to explain my approach, how interventions we use are designed to help, and what you can expect from our work together.
The biggest strengths that I bring into our sessions
My clients will often share that they appreciate my ability to normalize and share their concerns. When clinically appropriate, I can empathize with my own experiences managing anxiety, grief, trauma, and unexpected life transitions. Therapists are human too, and rather than approaching your concerns in a cookie cutter or textbook manner, I prefer approaching our time together as a relationship where every client is different with their own unique needs.
The clients I'm best positioned to serve
One of the best parts about my job is getting to meet so many different people with distinct life experiences and paths. My ideal client has clear goals of what they want to achieve in therapy, and is interested in working together to make meaningful changes in their life. Our work is collaborative, and I appreciate when clients give me honest feedback. If you try an intervention or suggestion we discussed and find that it was unsuccessful, feel free to tell me. We will make the changes we need to to help you succeed in your goals.
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
Cognitive behavioral therapy is a helpful framework for working through many common mental health challenges. It helps us to identify patterns in our thinking, common missteps we all make with negative internal dialogue, and the behaviors both positive and negative we engage in to cope. As we learn more, we can identify core negative beliefs that have often formed when we were young and influence our patterns today.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
Dialectical behavioral therapy is a useful framework for understanding our emotional responses and improving our interactions with other people, stressors in the world, and our selves. The four main pillars of DBT include mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotional regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.