Hello, I am a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist based in Southern California. I received my Master's degree from California Southern University and have been practicing for six years. I help those who are struggling in the following areas: mental health, mood disorders, addictions and substance use disorders, young adults, married couples, families, adolescents, veterans, men issues, and elderly population. I assist those who are experiencing life difficulties and help navigate through life transitions we all experience at varying times in our lives.
In our first session together, here's what you can expect
In our first session together, we'll start with brief introductions, then dive into the specific challenges you're facing. This will help me create a tailored plan for us to work through in follow-up sessions.
The biggest strengths that I bring into our sessions
Most of my strengths as a practicing therapist derive from having practiced in a multiple of treatment environments and with many different individuals and populations. In addition, I have an extensive clinical background working and helping others through their life struggles and challenges for over 20 plus years in both the area of mental health and addiction. I have established solid therapeutic approaches in helping you (a) identify the root cause of your challenges and (b) create a tailored plan that will lead to measurable progress.
The clients I'm best positioned to serve
I particularly enjoy working with those who I have served most often throughout my long career who are young and middle-aged adults, veterans, those who are struggling through an addiction, individuals, couples, married couples, and families. My clients are oftentimes those who are eager to improve and make changes in their own lives and willing to apply the tools both during treatment and in their daily life and well after completion of treatment, needed to make their stated goals a reality. Oftentimes, we learn together through deep exploration and work the self may be the sole barrier standing in the way of accomplishing a life well lived.
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
My experience with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy extends well over a decade. I would apply behavioral procedures and processes to influence adjustment and purposeful change of reactions and behaviors to apply in daily life. The main goal is to assist you in needed change. Most of my experience has also been applied using a hands-on, practical approach to problem-solving, discussing thought patterns which in many aspects may have developed during childhood. I will emphasize with you the close relationship between personal problems, behavior, and thoughts and also on how to focus in on cognitive thought processes. It's a proven approach which can aid you to make changes in behavior and attitudes with a deeper understanding of thoughts, images, beliefs, and attitudes. This treatment is customized to meet your specific needs aimed at correcting dysfunctional cognition and maladaptive behaviors (i.e., correcting misunderstandings, misinterpretations, and thoughts causing disruptions in daily life). CBT length can typically occur between 3 and 6 months, depending on problem areas.
Gestalt
I often apply a balanced approach of Gestalt therapy, closely associated with person and client-centered theories. I have extensive training in Gestalt therapy with an emphasize of understanding no one can be fully objective and that are influences are shaped by our environment and our experiences. I hold a safe and caring space thus allowing you to share their own truth, not impose judgment, and accept your truth and experiences as shared by you. Context Matters When in session, I apply techniques to help the client become more aware of their experiences, and more importantly their perceptions and their responses to events in the here and now. Rather than specifically targeting the past and asking clients to purposefully bring up old experiences, gestalt therapists operate from a place of understanding that as clients become increasingly aware, they will overcome existing roadblocks. There is no forced work or technique, just holding space for client awareness is key in this approach.
Solution Focused Brief Treatment
As an experienced Solution-Focused brief therapy, I place heavy emphasize on your present and future circumstances and goals rather than your past experiences. It is a more goal-oriented therapy, versus me exploring symptoms or issues that bought you to therapy; typically, the symptoms are not targeted, and I may utilize this approach due to your treatment may be limited or time sensitive. Instead, a qualified therapist encourages those in treatment to develop a vision of the future and offers support as they determine the skills, resources, and abilities needed to achieve that vision successfully.
Motivational Interviewing
Motivational Interviewing would involve a goal oriented person-centered approach through means of self-exploration. I would collaboratively assist you in setting up your own goals and objectives with an emphasize on placing key attention in making change, possibly having to do with many aspects of your life. We would also work on you strengthening your self-motivation and to commit yourself to further explore and draw out your own reasoning and meaning in your need to change. Lastly and more importantly, we will be equal partners in this process, which would require us to build a close rapport of trust and me allowing you time to examine your situation and options more closely.
Humanistic
In our sessions, I use an approach that focuses on you and your experiences. I believe that you already have strengths inside you, and my job is to help you notice and use them. This is a space where you don’t have to pretend or have everything figured out. You can talk about your thoughts and feelings openly, and you won’t get in trouble or judged for them. I’ll listen carefully and try to understand things from your point of view. I won’t tell you what to do or who to be. Instead, we’ll work together to help you understand yourself better, especially what you’re feeling right now. As you learn more about yourself, it often becomes easier to make choices that feel right for you (examples: feeling safe and accepted, learning to trust yourself, and growing at your own pace). If something doesn’t make sense or feels uncomfortable, we can always talk about it. This is your space.