1325 Quincy Street NEWashington, DC 20017
Individual Therapy
what happens in individual therapy?
The therapy I provide treats low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, dissociation, codependency, unhealthy patterns, and compulsive behavior among other things.
I view therapy as a collaborative process. You know yourself better than anyone else knows you. I have training in understanding a wide range of human behavior and experience. I've also worked with many kinds of people. Through putting our individual expertise together we'll find the path that will be most helpful to you.
In each session, you share yourself, express your thoughts and feelings, and describe your experience. I ask questions, make comments, suggest a specific intervention, and/or provide education and explanations. Together, we figure out why problems are occurring and decide what to do about them.
Issues are not usually resolved in one session. It took time for you to develop the coping patterns you have and it takes time to work through understanding and changing them.
what will happen first?
In the first session, you tell me what brought you here, what you experience, and what you want to change. I ask you questions about relationships, work, eating, sleeping, ways of taking care of yourself, patterns of drinking or substance use (caffeine, drugs, nicotine, etc), and other ways you are currently helping yourself to manage your emotions and inner life.
We also review my policies, fee, and payment methods. You will learn what to expect from me and what I expect from you. And, if you want to come back, we set another appointment.
. . . and then what?
In subsequent sessions, you tell me what you want me to know about yourself and identify what you want to work on. I’ll suggest ways we might work on it. Sometimes we’ll just talk, or I might suggest using EMDR or doing a cycle (from the Solution Method).
Eventually we will get to know each other better and I will learn more about the things that contribute to your current experience.
Over time, I will share information about how to understand yourself, your emotions, and your behavior.
People are usually relieved to get this information and to learn that they are not alone.
what do I need to do?
- Be as honest and open as you are able to be
- Make a commitment to yourself and your growth
- Reserve time and money to follow through on this commitment
- Take risks to share more deeply about yourself
- Think about what you want to work on in your session
- When you leave, think about the work we did
- Ask questions, if you have them
- Take time for yourself, for journaling, for self-reflection
- Respect the privacy of those you see here
- Treat me, others, and the environment with respect