Individual Psychotherapy

Therapy is great, but starting therapy or going (back) into therapy can feel intimidating, daunting, and just not quite what you need sometimes (let alone what your bank account needs). Therapy can and should be more flexible than it often is, so I’m interested in meeting you where you are and figuring out a schedule and pace that works for you and your life.

OPTIONS

1) Short-Term, Time Limited:

We’ll work with a specific time frame in mind (6 weeks, 12 sessions, 6 months) and specific goals.  This time boundary can also really help us move forward: we don’t have all the time to do the things we want, and being reminded of that can help motivate and inspire us to do things NOW. Because if not now to work to be happier, more fulfilled, more authentic, when?

2) Therapy Tune-Ups & Check-Ins

We’ll work to establish our relationship and identify your current needs, then shift to a maintenance schedule that works for you (e.g. every month, every 2 months). A general structure would be to meet 4 weeks in a row (give or take), then see about what schedules work best.

3) Open-Ended Work

We'll see what you need and see where things go, while regularly checking in.

Therapy is A Dynamic Endeavor!  It's a Tool

As we work together to figure out what you need at this moment, of course you may realize you need more or less time, and that’s ok!  This is collaborative, feminist, and strengths-based, and sometimes saying when we have had enough—or when we want more—is exactly what we need. 

A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MY APPROACH...

I’m grounded in empathy and compassion and curiosity, of course. But, I’m also grounded in the absurd existential realities and our deep need to be human and to play, laugh, and embrace moments of joy and profound connection. I can be direct, I always endeavor to be collaborative, and I treasure those flow moments in therapy, in teaching, in groups, when being present with the moment and each other is..magic. 

My therapy approach is collaborative, supportive, and engaged. I’m grounded in feminist, multicultural, existential, and interpersonal perspectives and draw from a few others (CBT, psychodynamic). I fundamentally believe that on some level, we are all seeking meaning, connection, and healthy relationships. We are striving to live authentically and find fulfillment and belonging in a society and world that makes all of those things pretty challenging (as if life itself weren’t hard enough!

In our work, we’ll focus on identifying and capitalizing on strengths that you already have to meet your current challenges and keep on eye on issues of power, identity, and social locations that might be playing into some of those challenges. We may also telescope out to see how some common group dynamics (family, workplace, friendship) are contributing. Along the way, we’ll also work to tap into your sources of joy, laughter, and delight.

I've worked both short-term and long-term with with a diverse array of clients and issues.  Depression, anxiety, relationship and interpersonal issues are pretty common, as are more existential concerns (Is this all there is? What do I want my life to be?) and navigating the complexities of evolving personal identities in the world.  I have a particular expertise in working with women in STEM: I’ve  co-authored several book chapters and been involved in long-term research on career, identity, and work-life interface.  I am especially passionate about working with women and people of all genders noticing, questioning, examining, and resisting patriarchal notions and systems that limit us all. 

As a counseling psychologist, I have been trained to work with all of the problems of living: life stage challenges, relationships, career, grief & loss, being in groups, identity, culture and systems. I so strongly identify with my strengths-based, holistic, social justice-oriented discipline that I pursued Board Certification, earning my Diplomate in 2014. I served on the ABOCP Board as Treasurer, in addition to volunteering as a peer mentor. My license is the same as those trained in clinical psychology (Licensed Clinical Psychologist), but the fundamental orientation and approach are different.

Fit and comfort with a therapist are essential to being able to do good work. Feel free to contact me for a free 15-minute consultation to see if we might be a good fit!