PERSON-CENTERED THERAPY
Person-centered therapy is a form of talk therapy wherein the client does most of the talking. The therapeutic approach originated in the work of the American psychologist, Carl Rogers, who believed that everyone is different and everyone’s view of their world, and ability to manage it, needs to be trusted. As a person-centered therapist I believe that all of us have the power to find the best solutions for ourselves and make appropriate changes in our lives. It is a movement away from the therapist’s traditional role as an expert and leader toward a process that allows clients to use their own understanding of their experiences as a platform for healing. This client-focused process facilitates self-discovery, self-acceptance, and provides a means toward healing and positive growth.

EXISTENTIAL PSYCHOTHERAPY
Existential therapy developed out of the philosophies of Friedrich Nietzsche and Soren Kierkegaard. It focuses on free will, self-determination, and the search for meaning. Therapy centers on the client rather than the symptom. This approach emphasizes the client’s capacity to make rational choices and develop to a maximum potential. Existential psychotherapy embraces the themes of death, choice, freedom and isolation by recognizing that these forces are altogether human and shared by all of us. Therapy further focuses on life-enhancing experiences like relationships, love, courage, creativity, spirituality, self-actualization, authenticity, acceptance, transcendence, and awe. Existential therapists include Otto Rank, Irvin Yalom, Rollo May, Viktor Frankl and Fritz Perls.

MINDFULNESS-BASED APPROACHES
Jon Kabat-Zinn pioneered the introduction of mindfulness into Western medicine in the late 1970s by creating the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program at the University of Massachusetts to treat chronic illness and pain. He defines mindfulness as “the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally, to things as they are.” As a therapist, I have attended workshops facilitated by Jon Kabat-Zinn as well as the 8-week Mindfulness-Based-Stress-Reduction (MBSR) program offered by the UMass Memorial Medical Center. I do incorporate mindfulness and the MBSR principals into my clinical work with clients as well as into my own daily practice.

OTHER MODELS
While the aforementioned three therapeutic approaches form the foundation of my clinical practice, I draw on a number of other therapeutic modalities and techniques as needed by the client. Some of the other theoretical approaches or techniques include cognitive behavior therapy, motivational interviewing, solution-focused therapy, EMDR, positive psychology, somatic experiencing and advanced training in loss and grief counselling.

Group Counselling and Individual Therapy Services are available for Adults ages 18+.