PERSONAL

The common issues that bring people to see me are anxiety, depression, relationships, and an assortment of other things. Check out the section here on my website about relationships.  But what about personal concerns?

Anxiety and depression are the equivalent of the common cold of psychological problems. Everybody gets them sooner or later. Because they are so common, there is a great deal of scientific data about these mood disorders. We can usually help someone improve within a few sessions. 

Anxiety can take a several forms.  It can be the questioning about how other people see you at parties, or at work or school  (Social Anxiety).  It can be questioning whether thoughts we have are evidence of a deeper problem, and/or taking steps to keep bad thoughts from entering real life by washing hands or checking a stove, or repeating certain words to stave off trouble (OCD).  Or, it can be questioning minor physical symptoms or bad thoughts to the point where anxiety gets intense, with shallow breathing and elevated heart rate, dizziness, and fears of dying or of going crazy (Panic Attack).  Or it can be persistent, low level worrying and expecting things to to go wrong (Generalized Anxiety).

Depression takes different forms for men and women. For women, it takes the form we usually think of: believing that nothing works out for you, or that you are defective or fatally flawed; Sadness, lack of energy, difficulty concentrating, problems with sleeping, and persistent self-doubt or low self-esteem.  It sounds like this in her mind: "Why aren't I more excited about my life?  I don't feel like I have a lot of direction or purpose. What's wrong with me? Why can't I seem to do things right?" Are they mad at me?

For men, its more of an angry or sullen look. He might seem to want to be left alone, and glares at family members if they try to talk.  He may believe he has gotten bad breaks, or that life has been unfair.  He may feel resentful or bitter, or just detached. He may be going over slights from others and holding on to the anger about it, or thinking about what it would be like if he were just gone.

Spiritual Growth. Sometimes people seek me out for my specialty of integrating psychological and spiritual insights.  Maybe it's trying to explore faith without having to deal with assumptions of a particular church.  Maybe it's a toxic or dysfunctional church that has taken a toll on them, leading to feelings of shame, failure, or sometimes outright trauma from spiritual abuse.  Sometimes it's a more general desire to find more meaning in life, or a concern about life after death, or struggling with spiritual practices like prayer or meditation, or forgiveness. Sometimes it's trying to come to terms spiritually with suffering or evil in the world.

Self-Improvement.  At times, people don't have a particular psychological problem, but they simply want to improve themselves, or become their best self.  You might wonder, "What is holding me back from really achieving what I want to do. What is the obstacle?"  Or, "How can I know whether I am really doing what I was put put on the earth to do?" Or, "I'm fairly happy with the way my life is going. But I don't seem to be able to get to the point where I feel I've reached my full potential.  How can I push through to become the best version of me?" 

In any of these ways, I can give you a sounding board to collect your thoughts, assist you in in uncovering what is holding you back, plan what to do to overcome the limitations, and hold you accountable to follow through with the actions to reach your goals.