New to Grow
I am a therapist that enjoys using client centered strategies to help clients better understand themselves and how they exist in the world around them. When I look at my journey through life, I have found that some of the greatest changes I have made were through conversations with others who helped me to see the world from a lens of choice. I have learned over the years that choice relates to actions, that in turn influence dynamics of empowerment and advocacy. Empowerment, advocacy, and perseverance are terms easy to grasp by definition, but much more difficult to follow through with in our day to day experiences. I believe that healing and growth really begin to set in when decisions are made to accept the current reality of ones life and then further commit to strategically apply necessary changes. Over time, I have noticed that therapy often can help people (myself included) gain a greater sense of self efficacy and self confidence, especially when we learn how powerful our thoughts and actions can be! In other words, it is ok if there are things happening in our day that we would rather not go through, however we also have a choice in how we respond in that day. I value the importance of a healthy and healing therapeutic relationship! I also value the process of exploring how trust and hope participate towards how we experience the world.
In our first session together, here's what you can expect
Our first session is often referred to as "Intake session", in this session I will ask you questions about why you are in therapy today, including some of the major details of your life that have contributed to who you are today. This session is designed for me to get the best possible understanding of who you are and how you see the world around you.
The biggest strengths that I bring into our sessions
One of my greatest strengths is the ability to work from a client centered modality using a medical model approach to therapy ( i.e. Formulate a diagnosis and then generate a treatment plan). I value using a collaborative approach that brings together both of our strengths, knowledge, and experience. I also believe that people are able to overcome most of their conditions that causes them distress through perseverance, dedication, and hard work!
The clients I'm best positioned to serve
Although I do not ascribe to the notion of a best fit or ideal client, I will share that clients who see success in treatment with me are often willing to be open and honest about their presenting problems. Through self exploration, I join along side in therapy to discuss varying perspectives, including interventions that may be helpful to make necessary changes to resolve some of the issues that brought you to therapy. At this point in therapy, which will take time, most clients find either a behavior, a feeling, a thought, or maybe even an external situation has played a role in how they are experiencing distress. Some clients find relief in learning that life could be different from that point forward, but also are fearful to apply the changes brought up in therapy. Although I identify as a client centered therapist, I am skilled and using an integrative approach to help facilitate the process of change. If you have any questions about which therapies I tend to use, please ask me and I would love to explain the therapy in more detail!
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I work from a client centered orientation that focuses heavily on the correlation between thoughts, behaviors, and feelings using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. We will spend time in each session identifying and relating your experiences related towards the presenting issues, highlighting the interrelationship of thought, feeling, and behavior. Along side CBT and client centered modalities, I often will use an integrative approach that is strength based, while we explore any given persons strength I will try to begin integrating various interventions to help resolve the reasons that bring you to treatment.