Individual Therapy

Your emotions are eating you up.

Anxiety, sadness, hurt, anger.

You don’t want anyone to know, but deep inside, you feel like you’re not good enough – that if anyone ever knew the real you, they would shame you, abandon you, or expose you.

Your life looks nothing like you wanted it to be. It would be great if you could start over, but the hole you’ve dug is too deep. And the roads ahead do not provide you with hope. In fact, they look like long, miserable paths to nowhere.

Your friends and family say you’ve got an anger problem. You tell them they’re full of it and would be just as upset if they were in your shoes. But privately, you think they’re right. You have lost your temper a lot lately, and even if it seemed justified, that’s not who you want to be.

They’re taking on a life of their own.

You’ve tried pushing the emotions away to deal with them at a better time, but they didn’t get the message. They insist on plaguing your mind at all the worst times – while you’re supposed to be working or trying to have fun with friends, especially when trying to get some sleep.

You give them an audience, hoping you can work out the problem in your head and find a satisfying solution that makes them go away. But that seems to make them stronger. The “what ifs” multiply. The “if only’s” lead nowhere. The critical voice in your head reminds you of your mistakes.

You’re not meeting your deadlines. Your relationships have soured. The nights staring at the clock are taking a toll.

You’ve got to do something different.

You can keep going solo, or you can get outside help.

But that’s scary and often a hit to our ego. I know… I’ve been there. I’ve felt the embarrassment of admitting to someone else that I was depressed, anxious, or failing at something in my life.

That’s why we start with confidentiality. When you work with me, you need to know this one thing: If word ever gets out about what we talked about, it will be because YOU told someone, not me. (There are legal limitations to that, but we’ll discuss them before going further in our first session.) So, you don’t have to worry about what people will say or think because they won’t know.

And I’m not going to judge you. That would be rather hypocritical since I’ve gone to counseling myself, and I still have things I’m working on in my life. So, if anyone judges you in our session, it will be you. And guess what: I’ll help you stop doing that.

After going over the details about confidentiality, we’ll talk about whatever you want. Most people want to jump right in with why they’re seeking help. They’ll summarize the problem and what they hope to be different in their life.

We’ll talk about what you’ve tried, what has worked and hasn’t, and what seems to be standing in the way.

And when you’re ready, we’ll talk about your history: where you come from, what your family was like, and what you’ve learned (good and bad) from your upbringing and experiences. That’s important because sometimes our present problems result from how we’ve solved (or attempted to solve) problems in our past. In addition, the challenges you face today might come from how you’ve learned to think about yourself based on how you’ve been treated in the past.

Then, we’ll work together to establish goals for our work together. I don’t want to waste your time and money just talking for the sake of talking. You want our time to be productive, so we need to define what that means for you.

Sometimes, I’ll offer helpful insights – things that you may have never fully considered. Other times, I’ll listen, truly listen, so that you are actually heard and understood. To the degree you are comfortable with, we’ll dive into areas of your life you may have never discussed (or considered) before.

And over time, you’ll find ways to accept, love, and believe in yourself!

Fear can be a friend, wisely warning us from taking foolish steps.

But too often, fear is an enemy talking us out of walking down the road toward life-changing opportunities.

Is fear speaking to you right now preventing you from exploring the next step?

You’re still controlling what you decide to do. All you’re doing by making the call is getting more information to make a good decision. We’ll talk about what is going on and what you want, and I’ll tell you what I can provide as a guide walking the journey with you.

Are you ready to explore what future might lie ahead? Call me, and let’s set up a time to talk: (972) 295-9267.