COUNsELING APPROACH
Counseling Relationship: The counseling relationship provides and opportunity where difficulties in one’s personal life and relationships can be explored in an environment of care and trust. It is the goal of the counseling relationship that you will grow in awareness of yourself and your relationships and that this growth will provide you with an opportunity to make new choices and implement them in your life. Counseling is a collaborative relationship where the counselor offers his experience and knowledge to help create an atmosphere where understanding, change and growth are possible. Together we will identify, discuss, and explore you concerns. In this environment, you as the client are responsible for choosing and implementing the specific changes you desire for your life. That is, I will help you think through the possibilities and consequences of decisions, but you are always making the decisions and choices.
Areas of Expertise
Individual, Marital, and Family Therapy. This includes working with marital and family relationship problems. It also includes working with problems such as depression, anxiety, grief and loss, recovery, family of origin issues, and the integration of psychological and spiritual growth through pastoral counseling. I hold national certification as a Clinical Member of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapist and as a Fellow of the American Association of Pastoral Counselors.
Services Offered and Clients Served
I use an integration of psychodynamic, family systems, and cognitive-behavioral approaches to therapy. These approaches emphasize the importance of understanding how one’s past experiences of relationships in one’s family of origin and other significant relationships influence our present relationships. They emphasize the importance of one’s present relationships to understand and resolve current individual and family difficulties. These approaches also emphasize the importance of the development of each individual’s unique personality and the importance of self-awareness and ongoing growth in order to enhance individual and relational fulfillment. I utilize a variety of formats including individual, couple and family sessions.