It’s not helpful for me to go 7-11 and expect a 5 star meal, no offense to 7-11, I love a slurpee on a hot summer day. But they set-up clear expectations for their clientele. This is also an important goal for me to do as a therapist. Meeting with a new therapist can be daunting. I don’t want you to have to meet with 6 until you find “the right fit for you”. That’s not fair to you nor the therapists.

Therefore, I’ve listed a few qualities below I believe I possess to help you determine if I’m your ideal therapist and some qualities about the clients that I, as a therapist, match and work with the best.

If this is you and you think I might be an ideal therapist, fabulous! Check out my bio if you haven’t yet to make sure you feel that I’m your ideal therapist and then let’s chat over the phone and set up that first session.

Not sure? Let’s still chat and find out one way or the other.

Definitely not up for my style? No worries! There are lots of amazing therapists out there ready to meet with you. You can check with your insurance company for a referral, PsychologyToday.com or a general search on the internet.

• You trust the process of therapy and the process of EMDR, the ITR Method, etc. if we choose to utilize those modalities. Lots of researchers spent a lot of time exploring what works and what doesn’t work.
• You understand that therapy is more than venting, getting something off your chest and talking about your feelings. We’ll definitely make space for those things….I LOVE exploring feelings! But if you want to reach your goals, we need to also make space for the real work, that’s where the magic happens!
• You know that we need to look backwards to truly move past our past and into the future. We won’t spend much time each session discussing daily stressors. We will discuss them, but then look at times in our past we also felt similarly. Finding those patterns, noticing our reactions, our body sensations, etc. and then the change can happen.
• You value self-exploration and personal responsibility. I am like a tour guide. I can guide you around something and point things out. But I cannot open your eyes for you, make you look, nor force you to take the view in. That’s up to you. But I will work as hard as you do.
• You are ready to try something that is perhaps new to them and a little weird or wacky. Holding EMDR buzzers while thinking of a negative belief about yourself if WEIRD! I totally get that! I thought it was bonkers when I first learned about it. Even during my initial training, I remember sitting there thinking, “this is so stupid. No way will I even convince anyone to try this”. And then guess what. I tried it. And holy cannoli! It was amazing! If what you’re trying ain’t working, then let’s try something else, even if it’s a little wacky.
• You are ready to have fun in therapy. Not every session will be earth shattering with progress. Some sessions may leave you feeling worse than when you walked in the office. But it’s back to trusting the processing. The tweaks we can make add up to the change you seek. Just not always on our timeline.
• You agree to regularly attend sessions; I can’t help you reach your goals if I don’t see you. I understand life happens and there may be breaks in between sessions for vacations, illnesses, etc. Always communicate those with me and we can make adjustments to schedules, sessions, etc.
• You also agree to emotionally invest in the therapy process. It can be scary to emotionally invest in something. I get that! Positive results are never guaranteed in anything. But positive results are definitely not guaranteed if you aren’t invested in achieving them. We will take it at your pace, I don’t expect you to be 100% invested on day 1, it can be a gradual build-up. But the invest has to come for it to work.
• You accept that I cannot give you advice, unless it’s about anchovies, then I totally will tell you to not do it. Ick! Other than that, you’re on your own! What? No way! I’m totally here for you! But to help you figure out what you want. Not what I want for you.
• You accept that I am a perfectly imperfect human being who is trying my best.

• I value your time and commitment to your journey. I strive to bring my entire presence to our sessions together.
• I value professional boundaries and your privacy and confidentiality and will do everything in my power to maintain them.
• I agree to guinea pig things before I suggest them to someone. You know why I know EMDR, parts therapy, the ITR Method, etc are amazing? Because I’ve tried them myself! Therapist trainings are full of guinea pigging these things on colleagues, it’s the best way for us to learn.
• I will hold space for you and not pass judgment.
• I agree to seek regular supervision and therapy. I cannot be an effective therapist if I am not willing to learn about myself, including my flaws and non-helpful thinking. I believe we humans are always growing and evolving and I will do my part to grow and evolve in healthy ways.
• I will listen with my ears and eyes and will work to meet you where you are.
• I will practice empathy and accept your truth and honor your story.
• I accept that I do not know it all; do not have all the answers; and can always learn something new. In addition to learning via supervision or with my own therapist, I know that you have a lot to teach me. I know there are always new ideas and techniques that I can learn and utilize from a training and I regularly attend trainings within my field and outside.