Services & Expertise
There are many different forms of psychotherapy as well as tools and techniques that mental health professionals can offer. Please feel free to read about my specific training and expertise below or visit the counselor page for a list of my experience, education, and specialties. This page will give you more information about the various types of therapuetic services that I offer at my private practice. You can also find some links to outside resources listed, which provides supplemental information about each modality/technique listed.
Guided Imagery
I was trained and certified in 2010 by Chuck and Patty Leviton at Synergy Seminars in their unique therapeutic approach, called Intrapersonal Guided Imagery. This method combines guided imagery with interactive therapeutic parts work to overcome symptoms, change unhealthy habits, and foster more adaptive choices and relationships.
Guided imagery enables clients to learn about themselves and others in new ways. It also offers people a way to harness the power their own mind to heal and improve their lives. This technique can be used to reduce mental, emotional, and somatic complaints, including chronic pain.
Children are especially proficient at guided imagery because they typically have such active imaginations. They can use creative, symbolic images to overcome their fears, reduce anxiety, face adversity, and change negative patterns.
I use both interactive and scripted guided imagery to help clients relax and process emotions and experiences. Because this calm state elicits alpha brain waves, individuals can work through problems, formulate new solutions, do parts work, and learn from their subconscious all while maintaining a state of well being. This state of mind can also boost a person's immune system, reduce stress and anxiety, and increase access to intuition and creativity. For more information about guided imagery, please visit:
https://www.guidedimageryforhealing.com/what-is-guided-imagery
EMDR
I received my level 1 and 2 training in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Retraining) in 2023. EMDR is a form of psychotherapy that is not reliant on typical "talk therapy." It is a step-by-step process that helps the brain to reprocess difficult memories in adaptive ways that help to alleviate symptoms related to those overwhelming memories. The process reduces the emotional charge of these memories, produces more helpful thoughts, and frees us to react to current experiences in more functional ways. EMDR can treat a variety of mental health conditions, including:
-
PTSD
-
Depression
-
Dissociation
-
Grief
-
Chronic Pain
-
Anxiety / Panic
-
Phobias
When working with children, I combine activities from Play Therapy, Theraplay®, and Sandtray Therapy to the EMDR phases to engage young clients and help them externalize difficult experiences. This makes EMDR more accessible, meaningful, and less stressful for young clients.
For more information about EMDR, click here.
EFT
I was initially trained in Emotion-Focused Therapy ("EFT") for couples in 2021 and in EFT for individuals when it first became available in early 2023. Emotion-Focused Therapy is a form of short-term therapy that is backed by significant research. It was originally used with couples and has also been adapted to work with families and individuals.
Why Focus on Attachment?
EFT is based on attachment theory and has been shown to create lasting change for couples in over 20 empirical studies. Secure attachment in children tends to improve emotional intelligence, provide protection from feelings of hopelessness and helplessness, increase good social skills and relationships, and boost mental health. Secure attachments aren't just something we need when we are young. We continue to need secure attachments to ourselves and others to have healthy relationships and well-being.
During EFT, the therapist and client use strategies that promote the awareness, acceptance, expression, utilization, regulation, and transformation of emotion. They also co-create corrective emotional experiences with the therapist and/or significant others. The goals of EFT are to strengthen the sense of self, regulate affect better, and create new and beneficial meanings about ourselves and others.
I am currently working towards certification in EFT and use it in my work with both individuals and couples. For more information about EFT, please visit:
Mindfulness
I was initially trained in meditation and mindfulness during my undergraduate program in 1994. Since that time, mindfulness has been part of my own personal practice and my work as a therapist. Mindfulness isn't a religious activity, however, some people use it to enhance their spiritual practice, prayer, or personal growth. It is a state of focused attention on the present moment, that can increase self-awareness, improve concentration, reduce impulsivity, and enhance someone's emotional regulation skills.
We can create struggle, stress, and mental and emotional symptoms by fixating on things we can't change from the past as well as by ruminating on things that may never happen in the future. Mindfulness allows us to let go of things that distract us; things that increase our struggle and pain; and, ultimately, things that we can't control anyway. In this way, mindfulness can reduce stress, fatigue, anxiety, and depression. It is used to reduce chronic pain as well as cravings for addictive behaviors and substances. Mindfulness can also improve physical health and boost the immune system. For more information about mindfulness based interventions, please visit this link.
Positive Discipline
I became a Certified Parent Educator in Positive Discipline in May, 2015. Positive Discipline is a program focused on teaching young people how to be respectful and thoughtful family members and citizens. It is an experiential model that helps caregivers and adults understand young people and teach them in respectful ways. Positive Discipline fosters problem solving skills and meaningful connections between youth and adults and is respectful of not only parents and educators, but also the youth. You can find my professional profile on the Positive Discipline Association website. For more information about Positive Discipline, please visit the official website.