As a psychotherapist, I bring 12 years of experience working with individuals, adult and adolescent, couples, and groups: addressing the areas of addiction, substance abuse and sexual addiction. I believe the therapeutic relationship provides space for insight and problem-solving, and also warmth, humor, and emotional depth

In therapy, I challenge clients to examine their expectations for life, their preconceptions about the world around them. Regarding addictions, I integrate 12-step philosophy with developmental theories of the human psyche; utilizing principles of self psychology, I help clients develop awareness of their psychological defenses. Meanwhile, offering a social perspective, I help clients examine their struggle in a broader context. Psychotherapy can sometimes feel like a counterintuitive process: the social pressure to “keep busy” or to make “actions speak louder than words” may compete with the hunger for an internal contemplation. All of these goals are also applicable to couples therapy, wherein we can add further tasks: separating what’s real from others’ projections (identifying blame and advice-giving); demystifying the concept of personal responsibility.

On Addiction:

To begin addressing questions of addiction is to begin a process of internal contemplation: to speak honestly as to the impact of the behavior(s) upon one's life; to assess patterns of isolation, that is, the patterns of secrecy, deception, of emotional withdrawal, that accompany and fuel the escalation of problems.

I invite visitors to read my articles upon distorted beliefs and substance use, as well as group therapy, to understand further:

What is a MFT?

• Marriage and family therapists treat a wide range of serious clinical problems including depression, anxiety, marital problems, individual psychological problems, and child-parent problems
• Marriage and family therapists are mental health professionals trained at a Master’s degree level, to diagnose and treat mental and emotional disorders within the context of marriage and family systems.

• There exists a stereotype in our culture that while women are drawn to self-revealing, accepting, and intimate relationships, men shy away from intimacy and closeness. Three common barriers to close relationships among men are: competition between men, traditional masculine stereotypes about "real men", and fear of homosexuality. In my work with men, I help explore the myths of masculinity, challenge men to see women's souls. I draw influence from renowned writers such as Robert Bly, Robert Moore, as well as up-and-coming artists such as Rick Belden.

"Groups, Meetings, & Dinner Tables: What group therapy offers"

Article summary:

The article “Groups, Meetings, & Dinner Tables: What group therapy offers” is a polemical essay for a certain style of group facilitation, a sampling of interventions, boundaries, and norms, borne of both a decade’s experience and the influence of Irvin Yalom, principally. While this subject has been the focus of widely read textbooks and indeed novels, this short series of observations touches upon, and adds personal recollections, to the following areas: fee setting and duration of treatment; process versus content focus; continuum of group feedback; and therapist self-disclosure. I assert the need for group rules—such as the establishment of a minimum duration of treatment—so that group cohesion can develop. I depict group therapy as a forum for the committed client, and the active therapist, engaged in a process that draws attention to spontaneous, “here and now” moments, in order to teach individuals how they relate to others. In addition, the article provides contrasting descriptions of typical group therapy norms, and those typically found within the 12-step movement. While my opinions assume the reader possesses a certain familiarity with both 12-step and group therapy, the purpose herein is to offer a rough consumers’ guide to what are important differences between two formats sometimes perceived as interchangeable. The first part of the title, “Groups, Meetings, & Dinner Tables”, offers a bit of surrealism and humor. It references three arenas of fellowship (group therapy, 12-step, and the commonly social, or familial), each competing to set rules for social discourse. Meanwhile, imagine a dinner table discussion intruded upon by a process-oriented group therapist. My article is a reminder to a readership of psychotherapists, that our clients draw expectations for therapy from a variety of contexts. It is, as well, a statement for group therapy, of the fascinating growth potential it offers.