I commend you for looking for a therapist who feels good to you. Most people need someone to talk to when they're dealing with difficult feelings and situations. Two of our most important needs are to feel understood and to feel cared about. We begin by exploring what led you to look for a therapist and by spending time exploring what you need right now. If you feel better, if you sense that I understand and care about what you're going through, then we're on the right track.
Our work together is collaborative to uncover the source of the difficult feelings and painful situations that are troubling you. Some of these troubles come from legitimate needs that aren't being met, and some of the trouble comes from old requirements to think, feel, and behave in a way that pleases someone else but isn't completely authentic to you. Sometimes this collaborative work is brief, and at other times it can extend for years. Each of us has our unique needs and timetables. My training is in a contemporary, psychoanalytic approach called Intersubjective Self-Psychology that can be brief and focused, or as long as a client needs.
My clients usually feel better at the end of a session than they did at the beginning. They feel more aware of their legitimate needs and more accepting of themselves. Over time, most clients report feeling better able to manage unpleasant emotions and make decisions based more on what they really need than on what they've been trained to believe would be better for someone else. This is the result of a growth-enhancing, therapeutic relationship that strengthens the client's good feeling about themselves. Thanks for taking the time to read!
