Hey, I am Alyssa. Are you looking for someone to help guide you through some life and behavioral changes that have been a struggle? Do you notice difficulty managing moods, communicating effectively with others, and/or giving yourself compassion? I am excited and ready to travel that journey with you and offer a nonjudgemental, safe environment, to build a real therapeutic relationship. I use evidence-based interventions within a dialectical behavior therapy approach that incorporates mindfulness skills and love and kindness. I center my practice around the belief that we are a team and need each other to achieve your goals, as you are the specialist on you, and I am the specialist on the skills. It can be scary reaching out for help, and I have a safe space for you to start! If you are struggling with a life event, daily stress, depression, anxiety, mood dysregulation, or impulsivity there is hope. You do not need to feel stuck or alone in the struggle anymore! I look forward to working together.
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
During the first session, you can expect to focus on building that foundation of safety and comfort in the environment and therapeutic relationship. The following sessions will start to focus on identifying goals based on the expressed changes you want to make. It is more effective to create smaller, behavioral, measurable goals and we will work on identifying those based on the changes you identify. This allows us to work together on specific skills, problem-solve, and identify barriers to those changes. It also allows us to monitor progress throughout our work together.
What treatment methods and tools do you utilize?
I am a trained dialectical behavioral therapist (DBT) which includes specific structure to sessions and handouts. These handouts include the DBT diary card which helps us track the specific target behaviors that you would like to increase or decrease based on that treatment plan already established. I also use many DBT handouts that review and outline skills in interpersonal effectiveness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and mindfulness skills. I have some training in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) as well and therefore I do use handouts on the most common thinking errors to help reframe ineffective thinking.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
I have a specialty in mood dysregulation which includes personality disorders, depression, anxiety, and anger management. I have specialized training working with clients that may present with symptoms such as self-harm, suicidal ideation, ineffective communication with others, trouble managing emotions, and self-loathing. My background in behavioral approaches is an evidenced-based treatment for avoidance behaviors and therefore I have a strength in helping people minimize avoidance. I have some experience with the LGBTQ community, however no specific training. I do have some training and a little background in the struggle of eating disorders.