Areas of Specialty
I have extensive experience treating the following issues:
Problems with Worry (General Anxiety, Phobias, Obsessive Thinking and Behaviors)
Problems with Mood (Depression, Temper Flare-Ups, Lack of Motivation)
Problems with Eating (Body Image, Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia)
Interpersonal and Family Relationship Issues
Coping with Life Transitions
Job Stress
Self-Esteem and Self-Efficacy
Problems with Worry (General Anxiety, Phobias, Obsessive Thinking and Behaviors)
Problems with Mood (Depression, Temper Flare-Ups, Lack of Motivation)
Problems with Eating (Body Image, Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia)
Interpersonal and Family Relationship Issues
Coping with Life Transitions
Job Stress
Self-Esteem and Self-Efficacy
Individual Therapy
I provide individual therapy for teens and adults in a variety of modalities, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). I strive to use the best, evidence-based treatment for each individual's unique background and presenting issue. We have learned a lot about what works from research conducted over the past couple of decades, and I set goals with my clients that incorporate treatments proven to bring short-term relief with long-term results.
Family Therapy
Sometimes family therapy is needed to tackle difficult issues that affect the entire family system. One form of family therapy that I specialize in, Family Based Treatment (FBT) for eating disorders, was first developed by the Maudsley Hospital in London. I feel privileged to have been trained by Dr. James Lock and to have served as a therapist in one of the first research studies evaluating the effectiveness of FBT at Stanford University. The focus of this treatment is to restore the child to a healthy weight. This may involve intensive involvement by the child's parents to help the child make the "right" choices at meals. This is a suppotive process in which the teen's parents align with their teen to battle the eating disorder that has taken control of the teen's decision making. The treatment then transitions to a point at which the teen's parents may begin to slowly transfer responsibility for meals back to the teen. Later phases of the treatment involve the exploration of autonomy and processing other important developmental issues that will help the teen to be successful managing future challenges.
Parent Consultation
It isn't always necessary to bring a teen into therapy. In some instances, presenting problems can be managed with meetings between myself and the teen's parent(s). The goal of these meetings is to explore proven and effective strategies for managing parenting challenges.