Getting Started It is important for me to understand your child through your eyes. I want to know how you see your child growing, what interests them, how they navigate through challenges and what they love to do. For this reason, parents typically attend the first session without their child present. Information from any additional evaluations or school reports, which aid in formulating treatment planning, can be shared at this time.
A Team Approach My goal is to take psychology out of the therapy room and make it useful for you and your child in your daily lives. I take a team approach to help parent and child understand treatment rationale and practice new skills. Each member of the team has a job to do. I assist parents in learning to respond to anxious behaviors, mood changes or behavioral problems to more effectively help their child handle challenges. I view collaboration with school and other healthcare providers as essential to optimizing the efficacy of our treatment together. Over the years I have established a positive network of support with teachers, school psychologists, pediatricians and psychiatrists to help bring about positive change for the child. The Therapy Environment My office offers a safe, accepting and interesting place for children to come and learn about themselves and discover new ways to deal with their problems. Young children are concrete thinkers and need hands-on-tools to help them grasp therapeutic concepts. I actively engage children in creating materials that are used within the home or school setting to practice new skills and measure progress.
Teenagers
Adolescence is a period of rapid growth and brain development particularly around social learning and identity development. The developmental challenges posed by adolescence makes the process of therapy different for a teenager than for a young child or adult. As teens search for their own identity they frequently desire more privacy. Teens struggling with ADHD, OCD, anxiety, stress or impulse control may resist their parent's efforts to help, yet find it difficult to achieve change on their own. I recognize that parents are still largely responsible for their child at this age and that parent involvement is often key to the teen's progress. Most teens attend therapy on their own with parent involvement planned as needed. The level of parent involvement depends on the nature of the problem, how long it has been occurring and how well the teen is fulfilling daily life expectations. I believe an important goal for teens is to help them develop independence in applying treatment tools to improve their daily lives. It is not unusual for a teen to have some hesitancy about attending therapy. I provide a nonjudgmental strength focused therapy setting so that teens feel comfortable and understood. I help teens dealing with anxiety, depression, attentional issues, and social challenges modify their behaviors, manage emotions, and balance their thinking. I provide strategies for managing stress, organizational/study skills, and relationship struggles. I use evidence-based treatment strategies including CBT, DBT, and ACT to help teens feel better and meet their personal goals.
Young Adults
Rapid and numerous changes in independence characterizes the transition to college and the work place. Many young adults are faced with tackling life's obstacles away from home for the first time. As young adults transition to college they may need support feeling confident in their independence skills, handling academic stress, or forming social networks. The transition to the work place can be an overwhelming time yet it has the potential to act as a catalyst for growth. Young adults who have struggled with ADHD, anxiety, or OCD in the past may find they need to strengthen skills previously learned or need new ways to manage symptoms at this stage in their life. Within the therapeutic relationship, I offer young adults an ally who accepts them for who they are and I offer help in the form of evidence-based strategies such as CBT, DBT, and ACT.