James Homerding

What I offer in my practice is informed by my diverse educational and professional background. I am a transplant to the Pittsburgh area from Knoxville, TN and earned my BA at the University of Tennessee in anthropology, including one semester studying Irish archaeology at University College Dublin, Ireland. I have always been intrigued by all the ways we people are similar and unique at the same time.

Furthermore, in studying the cultures of the world, I found that we all essentially want the same things. We often have the same desires, fears, and needs. After completing my undergraduate studies, I decided that learning about people was not enough. I wanted to be an active participant to help individuals overcome barriers and realize a better quality of life. So, I earned a Master of Social Work degree at University of Pittsburgh.

My intervention is one of building a partnership with you to problem solve. I am not a passive therapist. I am interested in walking with you to realize the life you want. Acceptance is essential. However, while important, this is really just the logical starting point. Then it is time to summon the courage to go beyond perceived limitations for the purpose of creating the life which till now has seemed out of reach. It is truly remarkable what is possible when we put our heads together and consider new ideas. I have found that problems are often solved by adopting a willingness to change our perspective, rather than by will power alone.

I am here ready to assist anyone who is stuck and looking for a new approach to solve problems getting in the way of your ability to better enjoy this life full of opportunities and challenges. Nobody can do this alone.

The most important way to begin therapy is by listening to my client and learn what is the most important area they want to focus on, so if there is any suffering then I want to know about this so we can work together on a plan to get relief from this suffering. In other words, I am interested in hearing from you the client about what areas they want to focus on and from there we work as a team to formulate and implement the intervention which will yield positive outcomes. To me living the life we want is about solving a series of problems, and nobody solves life's problems alone. I am internally motivated and skilled at helping people get to the root of their problems and then identifying solutions. My modalities are centered in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Motivational Interviewing.

My hope is that we first establish a good rapport stemming from open nonjudgmental communication. From there I want to build trust which is essential if we are to make progress that you will be able to notice. If we have rapport and trust then the sky is the limit in terms of obtaining the quality of life that once seemed elusive.