Every therapist practices differently, according to their particular knowledge, experience, and personality. No two therapists operate in exactly the same way. I characterize my approach to psychotherapy as relational-eclectic. I cultivate relationships with my clients that allow us to explore the most important areas of life, using techniques from many different modalities. I'm pragmatic, so if something works, I'm willing to use it.
My early work experience was relational-behavioral, and I often encourage my clients to make small experiments to test out the freshly discovered insights that emerge from our sessions. Systemic thinking is one of my strong suits, and was the focus of my graduate school training. My early mentors and supervisors were PhD depth psychotherapists, and I continue to be inspired by how much reverence they have for the healing process of the human psyche.
Internal Family Systems, or "parts work" is a popular contemporary modality, one that many clients grasp intuitively, and has definitely influenced how I make sense of many commonly occurring ego dynamics. Since moving to Rhode Island, I've been more immersed in modern psychoanalytic theory, which accounts well for various forms of regression and offers clear pathways of continuing adult emotional development.
My undergraduate degree is in philosophy, and I'm drawn to big, abstract ideas, attempting to understand the world in all its dimensions. Psychotherapy grounds that impulse in something immediate: real human relationships. I find this work beautiful, effective, and totally compelling.