About the Fit

I work from an attachment-based relational psychodynamic lens deeply informed by liberatory frameworks.

This means during our sessions, we will examine the challenges you are facing by exploring your experiences in your childhood, family, community, and the world and how they have impacted you. We will use our relating to delve into your relationship with yourself and others. Understanding all this through liberatory frameworks that center your empowerment by addressing systemic and structural factors contributing to your struggle.

Liberatory frameworks help us reclaim agency and develop a stronger sense of self by recognizing and validating the social, cultural, and political contexts of our lived experience. They facilitate personal healing while fostering collective healing for social justice and transformation.

I believe that integrating attachment theory, psychodynamic concepts, and liberatory frameworks in therapy leads to more profound and sustainable well-being.

…

Finding the perfect psychotherapist for you and your process is important to me not only because research shows that the most important factor in deeply transformative work is a solid rapport between yourself and your therapist but also because I believe in everyone getting the unique care they need.

The best way to gauge the potential for a grounded and comfortable rapport is to take some time to talk about what is bringing you to therapy, what you are looking for in your therapist, and what you're hoping to work on.

If you feel good about our conversation after sharing your concerns, challenges, and goals with me, we'll schedule a time to meet on an ongoing, weekly basis.

Here are some key features of attachment-based relational psychodynamic psychotherapy include:

Attachment patterns are the imprints of the caregiving relationships.
Secure Attachment is characterized by trust, a sense of safety, and the ability to form healthy relationships.
Insecure Attachment includes anxious, avoidant, and disorganized attachment styles. These can manifest in difficulties with trust, emotional regulation, and relationship dynamics.
Relational psychotherapy explores how past relationships and experiences, particularly those within your family of origin, influence current patterns of relating to oneself and others. This exploration can help you gain insight into recurring themes and dynamics.
Early interactions with primary caregivers shape attachment styles and influence emotional and relational patterns throughout life.
Internal Working Models are mental representations of self and others based on early attachment experiences, affecting current relationships and self-perception.
We work together to recognize the impact of trauma on your attachment patterns and work through traumatic experiences to foster healing and secure attachment. Therapy focuses on healing relational trauma and fostering a sense of safety and trust.
I seek to create a secure base and safe haven, fostering trust and allowing you to explore vulnerabilities and develop healthier attachment patterns.
Our relationship serves as a corrective experience, helping you to repair and rework dysfunctional attachment patterns.
Our relationship is also a collaborative partnership in which we work together to explore and understand the emotions, thoughts, and behaviors you are struggling with. The quality of this relationship is considered essential for facilitating change and healing.
Through exploring early experiences and current relationships, you gain insight into your attachment patterns and how these influence your behavior and emotions.
Therapy aims to transform maladaptive attachment patterns into more secure and adaptive ones, improving overall psychological well-being.
Transference: Clients project feelings and patterns from past significant relationships onto the therapist, providing insight into attachment issues.
Countertransference: Therapists' emotional responses to clients, when understood and managed, can provide valuable information about the client's attachment dynamics.
Developing Skills: Therapy focuses on helping you understand and regulate your emotions, often compromised by insecure attachment styles.
Awareness and Expression: Encouraging you to become aware of and express your emotions within the safety of the therapeutic relationship.
Our work aims to help you develop the ability to understand your own and others' mental states, enhancing empathy and improving relational functioning.
Strengthening your capacity to reflect compassionately on your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors promotes insight and supports emotional regulation.
Our work aims to balance emotions and thoughts, encouraging the integration of emotional experiences with cognitive understanding and helping clients make sense of their attachment-related feelings and behaviors.
Therapy works to help you develop a healthy sense of autonomy while recognizing the importance of interdependent relationships which supports the ability to form and maintain balanced, reciprocal relationships.
My job is to be attuned to your emotional states and needs, which is crucial in fostering a secure therapeutic relationship.
I work to provide empathic understanding and validation of your experiences and emotions.
I will be genuine, empathetic, and nonjudgmental. I encourage open communication and transparency, creating a safe space to explore difficult emotions and experiences.
While relational psychotherapy has its roots in psychoanalytic theory, it integrates insights from other therapeutic modalities, such as humanistic, existential, and cognitive-behavioral approaches. As well, I am deeply informed by somatic, feminist, and queer theoretical orientations to psychotherapy. I tailor my interventions to meet your unique needs and preferences.
Relational psychotherapy acknowledges the inherent power differential between therapist and client and seeks to address it respectfully and ethically. I am attuned to how issues of power and privilege may influence the therapeutic process and work to empower clients in their healing journey.

Want to learn more about me? Or have general questions? Check out some frequently asked questions or reach out. I’d love to hear from you.