Therapy

The first one or two appointments focus on trying to better understand the concerns that brought you to treatment and determining what (if any) diagnosis is appropriate. As such, I want to hear from you about what is going on and I will ask questions. At the end of this evaluation, which may take one or two appointments, I will offer you my initial impressions and describe what our work together would look like. If you would like to continue with treatment, we will plan for 3-5 appointments and then check in to see how things are going, before scheduling more appointments. Appointments are typically 50 minutes long, although we may decide to meet for 90 minutes at first, for the initial evaluation.

Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), conducted from a culturally-sensitive perspective, will form the basis for our work together. I particularly embrace the framework of Recovery-Based CBT (R-CBT), which focuses on helping clients identify and work toward their own goals. I also use mindfulness- and compassion-based practices and principles from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

Psychotherapy is an active process, not a passive one -- you and I will work together to identify problems and goals. Goals are set early on, so that progress can be revisited over time, and our treatment plan can be modified if needed. In order for therapy to be most successful, I will ask you to work on things we talk about both during our sessions and in between sessions. Initially, we will likely meet on a weekly basis. After a period of time, we may meet every other week or once a month until treatment is complete, as improvements occur and in order to allow sufficient time for interventions to be practiced.

Please do not hesitate to ask any questions you might have about the therapy process, when you reach out to me.