Mental Health and Wellness Services

Clinical Psychology: With new clients, I provide an initial clinical interview and we collaborate on treatment goals and objectives. I offer a more extensive mental health evaluation if needed. I help a client gain clarity and insight regarding their stressors, symptoms, triggers, emotions, personal challenges, and behaviors that may be contributing to anxiety and / or depression.  I help a client in managing life crises, and I provide family support.   I educate clients on mental health and wellness, to understand how anxiety is manifested, and to cope better and feel more in control.

Counseling and Psychotherapy: I specialize in the treatment of Anxiety Disorders and Stress-Related Challenges (i.e., situational life stressors and issues contributing to anxiety, general anxiety, phobias, panic attacks, social anxiety, somatization disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, test and performance anxiety, and other struggles related to mental health). My treatment model includes Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy focused on helping clients empower their thoughts and influence positive behaviors, Psychodynamic Therapy to help clients resolve old issues and restore positive well-being, and Treatment Modalities and Tools for Coping which provide practical behavioral health strategies that support a calmer mental state, and greater self-reliance in clients managing stress in daily life. Counseling I help a client work through issues of concern as they navigate and face life challenges and transitions.

Health Psychology: A behavioral health and wellness program to support a client’s health care goals. I provide a behavioral health evaluation, and assess factors that may be contributing to health-related symptoms, including stress and anxiety, life challenges, diet and lifestyle, environmental triggers, and internal emotional triggers.  I create structured treatment goals that support a healthier lifestyle and the reduction of any contributing factors that may be under the control of the client.  I teach the client coping and restorative strategies, to help feel more in control of anxiety and stress.  I include the use of biofeedback and a variety of supportive behavioral health approaches to help the client gain internal awareness for stress reduction.  Some health conditions I often work with include: pain disorders, headaches, back pain, disorders related to muscle tension, TMJ, Irritable bowel syndrome, seasonal affective disorder, hypertension, traumatic brain injury, sleep disorders, habit cessation, among other challenges that may benefit from a behavioral wellness program.

Biofeedback Training: a computer-aided training process helping teach clients internal self-awareness, self-regulation of stress and anxiety symptoms, and restorative mental, physical, and behavioral coping strategies. There are several biofeedback modalities that can be helpful for behavioral health treatment and for general stress management.

EMG biofeedback measures surface muscle tension, and can be used to bring to awareness the challenges of dysponesis, or faulty ergonomic posture, misplaced efforts, or unnecessary tensing of muscles.  Dysponesis can lead to overuse syndrome, chronic muscle tension, injuries, headaches, and chronic pain disorders.  Mental stress can also contribute to excessive muscle tension, often a common way of coping.  Through awareness of tense muscles, a client can use the EMG biofeedback to learn to correct unhealthy posture, relax certain tense muscles, correct habits of tensing, relearn to feel relaxation and restoration of those muscles, and retain a more agile and healthy kinesthetic awareness in daily life.

Other Biofeedback Modalities: (GSR-palm sweat, Finger Temperature, Blood Pressure, Breathing, Heart Rate Variability, Blood Volume Pulse, and EKG) provide a means for internal awareness of stress and tension, and I teach a variety of self-regulation strategies to aid in reducing nervous system arousal, and support restorative skills for better coping and wellness.

Wellness Home Practice and Treatment Plan: I provide a client practice assignments to support health goals, training and education, and strategies to integrate coping and wellness in daily life.  I provide training for parents or partners of a client for home support when requested.  My practice model offers a client a proactive approach toward mental health and wellness, training and skills-building for greater self-efficacy and optimism, and stress management skills for life.