Therapy helps one better navigate whatever life may bring
Individual Therapy
“All that is within me cries to go back to my home . . . –Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Relationship Therapy
“There is nothing more obvious than that which is hidden.” -Confucius
Family Therapy
“All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way” -Leo Tolstoy
Substance Abuse
“Family quarrels are bitter things. They don’t go by any rules. They’re not like aches or wounds; they’re more like splits in the skin that won’t heal because there’s not enough material.” -F. Scott Fitzgerald
Individual Therapy
Self-care means an attitude of mutual respect, learning to live responsibly, and allowing others to live as they choose, as long as they don’t interfere with our decisions to live as we choose.
Taking responsibility for myself is a full-time job. For most people, it is probably the most significant part of the work that must be done when living and investing in relationships.
It is not necessary to be a victim of the emotional climate of others.
To be alive is to change – so it probably is not true that one has changed all one can – unless one is dead! Even so, two people never change at the same pace at the same time.
Relationship Therapy
Going to couples therapy can sound scary and potentially make you feel like your relationship is in distress. But the reality is that a couple seeking help from a professional–whether they are preparing to solidify their relationship (moving in together, marriage, family expansion), experiencing a bumpy period, or just wanting to develop improved communication skills–is a healthy and responsible decision to support your relationship.
When undergoing therapy with a couple, I focus on the couple's needs as a team, helping them to develop better conversational and problem-solving skills. Developing improved communication methods helps each partner to better understand what troubles the other. It also assists couples in addressing their particular situation, enabling each individual to work towards joint therapy goals.
A common misconception about couples therapy is believing that this treatment only applies to married couples, but it is important at any stage of a relationship. There is no need to have a problem to start the process; this approach helps couples to understand and change problematic patterns and create more safety, trust, understanding, and connection in their relationship.
Family Therapy
Asking for help takes courage
Wanting better for oneself and the people you care about – is healthy; reaching out to a stranger – is going outside the comfort zone.
There are so many questions and concerns: What can I expect? How much will it cost? How long will it take? Just how painful is it going to be to spill private information to a stranger? What if no one in my family will go with me? Can I attempt this on my own?
There definitely can be family change with only one person in the room working with a therapist. In physics there is an adage: for every action there is a reaction. This also applies to personal life work. Everyone wants to be happy, to have peace in their life. It is a natural thing for us to want better relationships with better communication and more love and understanding in this strange journey of life. There are ways to achieve something better, although there are also ways we can unknowingly and inadvertently sabotage our own road to happiness.
Substance Abuse
The Impact Of Alcohol And Drug Abuse On The Family
Living in a chemically abusing household in which alcohol or drug use is the central theme around which the family operates and tries to maneuver daily life – always has severe and profound effects on all family members. Abuse of a substance generally refers to a chronic pattern of excessive consumption even when there are negative consequences. These consequences can be physical, emotional, social, and/or financial. One gets hung over sick, engages in domestic violence, or perhaps misses work or family functions. Inappropriate behavior becomes embarrassing to family members, who quit inviting people over or going places as a couple or family. Relationships become strained, with family and friends distancing themselves or even cutting off. Marriages take a serious toll; a couple may eventually isolate themselves from a normal social network. And often, the financial cost of frequent alcohol and drug abuse can put a terrible strain on a family.
Family or others sometimes unwittingly contribute to the development and ongoing abuse through nagging, denial, or attempts to control the abuser verbally or otherwise. Increasing aggression can develop over time in intimate family relationships. For example, verbal abuse or aggression early in a relationship can predict later physical aggression; physical aggression can, in turn, lead to more physical aggression as time goes on. Alcohol or drug use makes these relations between earlier and later aggression even stronger.
All the while, the family is trying to hold on, believing, hoping, and praying that things will change and get better. But it only gets worse as the family members try to cope and compensate for the abuser.
Recent research findings suggest that family therapy, support, and interventions from the outset are important strategies for both the abuser and the struggling, affected family members caught in the trap of being overly responsible for their loved one. OR families and others close to drinkers and drug users can play a critical role in helping a user recognize a problem and seek help. Recognizing a problem as a problem and making a decision to change are two different steps. Drinkers often cite family or interpersonal problems as important factors contributing to a decision to seek help. Research supports the effectiveness of family-based treatment interventions to help substance abusers. Behavior couples’ therapy often leads to greater improvements in drinking or drug use than individually oriented therapy. Couples’ therapy also results in more stable and happier intimate relationships, better-functioning children, and decreases in domestic violence than therapy that does not include the partner and/or family. Contracting, relationship interventions, and better communication training are some examples of how therapy can help you, your partner, and your family.