Areas of Expertise
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
I am trained in EMDR through an EMDRIA approved site and use this evidence based therapy to help people to heal and recover from traumatic memories. One of the advantages of EMDR is that you do not have to talk about your trauma which makes it a gentler process than some other modalities. It is also associated with rapid processing of traumatic memories and usually results in a decrease in bothersome symptoms faster than more traditional talk therapies. EMDR can be used to treat anxiety, depression, PTSD, and other symptoms.
Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD)
Are you planning your life around avoiding social situations? Do you feel like you are being scrutinized or that you will be humiliated if you do or say the wrong thing? People with social anxiety do their best to hide their discomfort by avoiding the situation or, when they cannot avoid it, interacting the least amount possible. Because of this tendency, family and friends often view them as being extremely shy, to themselves, or even rude. It can feel like the people around you or the social situation are in control, making you feel anxious and helpless. Your interpretation of the event is telling your brain that you are in a dangerous situation and triggering the fight or flight response that you feel. By exploring and understanding this pattern, we can find a path to change your responses.
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Are you experiencing persistent thoughts, impulses, or images that you wish you could stop? You try to ignore or suppress the thoughts without success and may attempt to quiet them by engaging in some other behavior. This works for a time but then the thoughts or obsessions come back. This is the fruitless cycle of OCD. People suffering with this disorder often feel shame because they recognize that the obsessions or compulsions are excessive but are unable to do anything about them. The most common compulsions involve washing and cleaning, counting, checking, and repeating actions to reduce anxiety or fear. Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) can be a successful technique to improve OCD. This involves exposing yourself to the things that make you anxious and not engaging in the compulsive behavior. You may think this is counterintuitive, after all, you work hard trying to avoid the things that make you anxious but this begins in therapy with my support and guidance. We progress at a rate you are comfortable with and you will soon see that the anxiety decreases naturally.
Panic Disorder
Panic attacks are debilitating and may keep you from doing things you would like to be able to do. A panic attack is often described as an overwhelming and intense fear paired with physical symptoms such as pounding heart, chest pain, difficulty breathing, sweating, trembling, and nausea. You may feel like you are having a heart attack, going to die, or have a general feeling of impending doom. These attacks can be associated with a specific situation or come "out of the blue." If you are experiencing panic attacks, you know that you will do just about anything to avoid them. Together, we will explore how your thinking patterns contribute to panic and work on changing them.