My approach is warm, practical, and intuitive. My therapeutic practices are rooted in many orientations because I find wisdom in just about all of them. An integral orientation that includes Spirit, along with Carl Rogers’ philosophy of being client-centered, authentic, (accurately) empathetic, and holding the client with unconditional positive regard is the ground of my therapeutic practice—it holds everything else. “Everything else” includes
behavioral, because we are creatures of habit and I think that what we do and how we do it shows what we believe in our unconscious minds
somatic, because our emotions and thoughts show up as physical sensations, gestures, facial expressions and micro-expressions, and so we can work with them through the body
attachment theory, self psychology, family systems, and relational, because we all come from other people, learn our beliefs about ourselves and the world from them, learn to regulate our emotions in relationship with other people, and can be healed through loving, supportive relationships that validate our true selves
psychoanalytic, because we hide so much of why we are who we are away in the unconscious that it’s necessary to explore and examine it
gestalt, because who we are is always showing up in the present however much the roots are buried in the past, and the present is alive to be freshly witnessed and worked with
narrative, because story is powerful, and we tell ourselves our stories over and over, but some parts need to be edited and rewritten
Jungian and psychosynthesis, because archetypes, myth, and imagery communicate in a different, deeper way than words
eco-therapy, because we are part of nature and nature can be deeply healing and teaching for us
developmental theory and cultural/social/sexual identity, because it is both necessary and illuminating to see clients in the context of their communities and peers
My philosophy of and approach to therapy are really about wholeness. I look for the holes in my clients’ wholeness, and become curious about them: what would I expect to find there if all were intact? Where did the holes come from? Why are they still here? Are they getting bigger or smaller? When do I really hear the wind whistling through them? Are they structurally unsound or merely decorative?
I try to show up with no agenda, other than holding loving, kind, supportive space to help clients to find and connect with their authentic, shining selves.