INDIVIDUAL THERAPY

One on one, 55 minute long sessions. Weekly sessions are suggested. Bi-weekly sessions may be available.

Therapy typically involves a series of exploratory sessions at the beginning to determine if I am a good fit for the work you are hoping to do and to talk about what that work might look like. Future sessions may involve talking about current or past events, exploring internal conflicts, choosing goals to work towards, identifying and experiencing emotions, paying attention to the body, guided practices such as grounding or relaxation, learning and practicing communication or regulation skills, reflecting on values and actions, and active inquiry into your worldview and beliefs. I work from a grounding principle of curiosity and strive to create a space where we can be curious together about your experiences and what might be needed to make the changes you are wanting.

Ultimately, the purpose of therapy is to create new understandings and new experiences by way of a supportive and client-centered space where you can experiment, explore, and practice skills, strategies, and ways of relating which you can then apply in your life and relationships outside of therapy. Some therapists practice more insight-oriented, cognitive, or “top down” therapy, which starts with creating new understanding and posits that from this, new experiences will develop. Some therapists practice more somatic, experiential, or “bottom-up” approaches, which start with creating new experiences, and posit that from having new experiences, we can develop new understandings. I identify as a more “bottom-up,” experiential therapist who is familiar with and can incorporate some cognitive or “top-down” approaches.

Some people like things like worksheets, homework, and being taught concepts; these can be incorporated where desired. Formal diagnosis, such as telling you you have anxiety or depression, is not central to my approach or understanding of my clients. You may be interested to discuss diagnosis or other ways of understanding your problems, which we can if you want.

The length of time people stay in individual therapy is highly variable and ranges from 6-12 sessions to years. At the beginning of therapy, we can talk about your specific goals, needs, and treatment preferences, and how long we might plan to work together. Research shows that you will get more out of therapy more quickly if you engage with our work outside of session, whether via reflection, journaling, practice, homework, discussion, or continued learning with media resources.

You can read below a bit more about the types of therapy I draw most from.

modalities & models

Parts work premises that every person has a complex internal experience worth exploring. We may feel, want, or believe multiple things at once. “A part of us” may see things one way, while “another part” has a different perspective, and both are true at once within ourselves. Problems can occur when parts habitually “take the wheel,” causing us to act on behalf of only some of our needs without taking into account the rest of what is inside us. Working with parts in individual therapy often involves parsing out which parts are present for you in any given moment; exploring the motivations, desires, needs, and beliefs of those parts; understanding more about how, when, and why those parts developed; forming an amicable relationship with our parts; and cultivating Self leadership. Self-leadership involves defusing from the parts enough to access a Core Self – a grounded, adult you – that can take in input from each and every part and make responsive choices such that no one part has to “drive the bus” so to speak.

Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy is an attachment- and emotion- oriented approach that involves understanding the negative cycles of reactivity playing out recurrently in your life. We all have specific things that evoke core relational fears and longings, and when we are emotionally-activated by these fears and longings, we engage with others and ourselves in a habitual way. EFT slows down this process of reactivity by turning a magnifying glass onto what is happening within (internal processes) and between (interpersonal processes); identifying the core relational needs, primary emotions, and the emotional and behavioral habits for handling these; and creating opportunities to explore new ways of connecting with self and others that are more effective at addressing what’s at the root. In EFIT, you might imagine new ways of engaging with specific people, or practice engaging with yourself in new ways; this can involve hypothetical dialogues with imagined others or imaginal exercises in which you dialogue with yourself.

Psychodynamic therapy premises that problems that you are experiencing outside of therapy are likely to show for you in therapy as well. This is particularly true of interpersonal problems. For example, you may be worried about what other people think, and you may find that you are worried in therapy about what your therapist thinks. Or, you may be conflict avoidant, and find that in therapy you are reluctant to give feedback that directly addresses how you are experiencing the therapist. Circumstances such as these can be used to our advantage to learn more about your problems and create change. In psychodynamic therapy, the therapist is a “willing participant,” a person who is dedicated to exploring these patterns curiously with you, and to trying on new ways of being together. Using a prior example, a psychodynamic therapist can help you to try on the strategy of directly addressing conflict with the therapist, and process how that feels. Via these methods, you can develop new ways of relating in therapy that you can then try on in relationships outside of therapy.

The work that I do is heavily informed by research about trauma, development, attachment, and the nervous system, which means that we are likely to spend time looking at how you are reacting to the circumstances of your life including your automatic thoughts, your emotional reactions, your impulses to act, and your bodily responses. We will consider what cues in your environment you are reacting to and why you are sensitized to a particular interpretation of those cues, and compelled to a particular way of responding to them. We will look at early experiences as well as those across your lifespan that have contributed. We will look for ways these interpretations and behaviors have made sense given your life history and likely helped you before, as well as ways these interpretations and behaviors are holding you back now from living the life you want to live.

The work that I do is also non-pathologizing, meaning that I do not conceptualize you as defective, dysfunctional, or sick, and I do not conceptualize of my work as fixing you or treating your illness. I do not find the medical model of “mental illness” and associated frameworks for diagnosing disorders (such as the DSM) to be very useful. (That said, I am familiar with these and open to exploring them with clients who do see them as useful. I also have to assign a DSM diagnosis in order to bill your insurance.) Instead, I have come to believe that most of what causes distress actually makes sense in the context of my client’s lives. One piece of this is that systemic and structural factors which are ongoing often contribute to distress, and this distress is a sensible, functional response to dysfunctional, distressing circumstances. The other piece of this is that we use the best possible available strategies to survive. Eventually, contexts change, and our ways of interpreting and responding to our world may lag behind. We can work together to survive the ongoing, unchangeable parts of your world that are indeed distressing, and to update your interpretations, responses, and survival strategies for your current life contexts, adding to your toolkit and expanding the range of what feels possible.

who i see

I work with adults of all ages on issues related to developmental trauma, attachment, relationship problems, and emotion regulation. These issues might show up as difficulty connecting with others, frequent interpersonal conflict, mood swings, substance use or self harm behavior, or fears of abandonment. You must reside in the state of Michigan for us to work together.

I am especially dedicated to creating affirming space to work with individuals who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community, who practice ethical non-monogamy, or who are otherwise relating outside of traditional relationship norms.

Fees and insurance

$155 – private pay*
Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS)
Physician’s Health Plan (also called UM Health Plan) (PHP)
Blue Cross Complete Medicaid (BCC)

*private pay clients will receive a Good Faith Estimate

modalities & frameworks

Internal Family Systems therapy (or “parts work”)
Time Limited Dynamic Psychotherapy (interrupting negative interpersonal patterns)
Emotionally Focused Therapy (attachment and interpersonal work)
Schema Therapy (shifting core beliefs)
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (skills training)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (valued living)
Polyvagal Theory (working with the nervous system)
The Power, Threat, Meaning Framework (noticing how your symptoms are functional in your life context)

training & study

Master’s of Social Work with a concentration in clinical Interpersonal Practice, 2022

Clinical internship at the Women’s Center of Southeastern Michigan, 2021-2022

Over a decade of self-study/participation in radical mental health movements and peer support groups, from 2010-present

Intensive graduate independent study in Polyvagal Theory, the Power, Threat, Meaning Framework, Internal Family Systems therapy, Time Limited Dynamic Psychotherapy, and Emotionally Focused Therapy

5+ years of experience working as an emergency nurse responding to acute psychiatric concerns

Post graduate training in Emotionally Focused Therapy including an Externship (completed) and Core Skills (in progress)

Ongoing continuing education in trauma, attachment, and experiential therapies including reading books, listening to podcasts, and attending workshops and lectures

I have presented to nursing and therapy colleagues, students, and interns on LGBTQ+ and polyamory/ENM competent practice

location

Online sessions via telehealth

In person appointments may become available in Ann Arbor, MI, in the future.