Screaming – most of the time only inside

Emotions all over the place – So positive; so depressed. So confident; so unsure. Happy; feeling like your best friend doesn’t understand you.

Each day is a challenge. Getting out of bed takes all the energy saved up during the night – if there was restful sleep. Waking up during the night wanting to scream out loud happens frequently.

What is anxiety? Second-guessing each decision? Should haves… could haves… will this happen? … will that happen? Shaking all over. Trying to appear ‘normal’ – wait, what is normal?

Telling yourself to ‘get a grip’

Just saying, “I need to get a grip” doesn’t usually help. Having a friend or relative say, “Get over it” isn’t helpful either. A few friends are great at listening and providing good advice, but their comments might damage the friendship – and be erroneous as well. Besides, friends carry their own beliefs into your conversations.

Undoubtedly, day-to-day circumstances are triggering depression and/or anxiety (these often are experienced together). But how can the triggers be eliminated?

Therapy CAN help!

Individual psychotherapy is personalized and created to best address your unique needs and problems. As a therapist, I bring skills and training to help improve your mental health without risking damage to your personal relationships. The focus is on YOU and YOUR needs.

Therapy can seem like two people talking, but there is so much more going on under the surface. I will be listening for themes, beliefs and patterns that are woven through the stories you are telling me. I will be paying attention to past events and experiences and how they might relate to your present experiences. I will be helping you make connections between them and develop an understanding of what is contributing to your pain and suffering.

We will work together to identify goals for therapy and how to achieve those goals. All along, I will be trying to understand YOU from your point of view, to put myself in your shoes to understand your story.

This will help both you and I understand what life experiences and messages received during childhood may be contributing to impact your sense of self and your relationships. This understanding alone is beneficial and will help you develop empathy and compassion for yourself.

But we don’t stop there!

Exploring your past experiences and relationships is helpful, but only in the service of understanding what is and isn’t working in your present life and improving your quality of the life you are living now.

We can focus on increasing your self-awareness; learning skills to better manage your emotions; challenging negative beliefs that adversely affect your life; learning new perspectives on situations and people; learning how to improve your relationships and avoid toxic ones; identifying negative and positive behaviors, decisions and patterns; learning how to be assertive and get your needs met in relationships; learning how your past is affecting the present; and improving your ability to enjoy yourself and life.

Ultimately, I will help you feel more resilient and confident in facing the life challenges that come your way.

I use my training and clinical experience incorporating three therapeutic modalities (Control Mastery Therapy, Self-Psychology theory, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) to guide me in my work.

Now is the time

Don’t continue to try to suppress the screams battling inside you for escape. Let me help you tackle the causes – and help you move to living a healthy, enjoyable life!

Please call me at (415) 888-8084 to schedule a free 20-minute consultation to discover if we are a good fit to work together on creating your new life.