About My Therapy

MY APPROACH TO THERAPY/COUNSELING:

General Statement of My Approach:
I will support and help you access your own deeper wisdom and healing potential to overcome the obstacles to your health and happiness.

I am non-judgmental and supportive. I will help you make the changes you want to make towards being the person you would like to be.

Read an article on Individual Therapy/Counseling, 'Becoming Your Authentic Self'.

Also, see my published article titled, 'My Growth as a Therapist: Deepening Understanding.'

MAIN THERAPY APPROACHES I USE:

I utilize most major therapeutic specialties, from which I choose the most appropriate for each individual at any given time depending on what is most appropriate for that person or what the individual may request. See below for how I work with Individuals and Couples as well as information about Groups and Consultation.

• Interactive Therapy
• Behavior Therapy
• Cognitive Therapy
• Interpersonal Therapy
• Psychodynamic Therapy

In Addition I Use the Following Therapy Methods:

• Guided visualization
• Meditation
• Toning and Energy work
• Dreamwork
• Breathwork

Additional Therapy Methods:

• Hypnosis (Board Certified)
• EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprogramming) (Level 1 Certified)
• Life Coaching (Certified 1999)

If you want to use my Life Coaching Approach, let me know. We will work in a direct, strongly focused way by setting specific goals in 'the here and now' and working towards reaching them, clearly identifying the steps and actions.

Additions to Therapy Used Primarily In Group Therapy:

• Shamanic Journeying Music
• Storytelling Movement
• Writing Leading Drumming Circles

PSYCHOTHERAPY/COUNSELING FOR INDIVIDUALS:

I work with adults 18 years or older, all ethnicities and either gender. I utilize a referral network and community resources.

We will Work Using Two Perspectives:

First Perspective: We will find new ways of working with your current problems in practical ways so that you can change to more positive ways of engaging with yourself and with others.

Second Perspective: In addition, we will discover if any experiences during your childhood may be influencing your current problems. If so, we will recognize old negative messages attached to those experiences that you are still holding. You can learn you do not need to apply them in your adult life. That will allow you to see yourself in positive ways in order to continue to move toward having positive relationships in all areas of your life and to realize unfulfilled goals. Read an article about this, 'Becoming Your Authentic Self.'

COUPLES COUNSELING/THERAPY:

I also work with: parent/adult child 'relatives' 'colleagues' 'friends' to work through problems and come to solutions.

If you feel:

• There are communications problems
• Stuck in your relationship
• A lack of intimacy and connectedness
• Frustrated, hopeless or guilty
• Caught in negative patterns of interactions
• Not understood

I will help you:

• Learn new ways of interacting
• Change hurtful ways of dealing with one another
• Learn how some ways you relate started before you knew each other, and how to change them
• Improve your self worth and use your new empowerment to enhance your partnership

When I work with couples:

• I respect the integrity of each person
• Am non-judgmental and supportive
• Will maintain an impartial approach

We will work towards your having the relationship you would like to have while still being the individual you are within the relationship. We will set goals and work towards fulfilling them. I am also open to your working towards an amicable, respectful separation, should that be your choice.

To understand the ways we will work, please refer to the above paragraphs under 'Individual Therapy' titled, 'We will Work Using Two Perspectives,' which applies to couples as well as to individuals.

Read my article on Couples Therapy, 'Three Main Reasons Couples Seek Counseling'.

WOMEN'S CIRCLE GROUPS:

I have many years of experience facilitating therapy groups in Berkeley, CA and the East Bay. Learn more about the group I am currently facilitating, 'Extraordinary Women's Group to Claim Your Authentic Self.'

CONSULTANT TO OTHER THERAPISTS:

Please call or email me for information on obtaining individual or group consultation about your clients.