Couples Therapy:


If a marriage cannot handle conflict, anger and frustration, resentment will build over time. Arguments over the same old topics are often masking deeper feelings that are never discussed. For some couples, the relationship can feel stuck at a superficial level, with both partners feeling bored, disengaged and lonely. Even a strong marriage can be strained if a family member has serious medical problems or is experiencing loss. Goals for your relationship may include articulating unspoken needs and wishes, deepening the sense of companionship, reviving the relationship sexually and adding a sense of fun to the marriage. In addition to couples counseling and seminars, I offer a well-researched assessment tool to give your marriage a check up, and use Emotionally Focused Therapy for couples who have gotten stuck in uhealthy, painful ways of interacting.

Couple Discernment Counseling

Sometimes couples may have differing ideas about what is best for the future of their relationship, or believe that they may be on the brink of divorce. If this is your situation, you may need help deciding what path to take. Often one partner is leaning toward repairing the relationship while the other is leaning toward ending the relationship, but both may be unsure. Discernment counseling is a very brief course of about 5 sessions during which I will work to help you each to have more clarity and confidence in a decision about the future of your marriage, based on a deeper understanding of what's happened to your marriage and each of your contributions to the problems. If this fits for you, let me know of your interest in Discernment Counseling. 

Individual Therapy: 


I provide a safe, caring, professional atmosphere, and my first priority is developing a trusting and understanding relationship with my clients. I work with clients who have had traumatic experiences, experience depression or anxiety, OCD, and other difficulties. I use both EMDR (see more here) and EFIT (Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy). We will focus on your present concerns while seeking to understand the importance of past events. At times, I will also use CBT (cognitive-behavioral therapy) techniques, which simply allow you to recognize the thoughts and behaviors that led to a downward spiral and to change them in positive ways.  


Family Therapy with Adult Children

Sometimes families have difficulties transitioning to the stage of adult children. Parents still love their children but may not understand them as adults. Adult children face the task of becoming fully their own person but still want to have a good, close relationship with their parents. It can be tricky! I use Emotionally Focused Family Therapy to help each person feel heard and understood. You don't have to go no contact of feel stuck if you can have healthier relationships and boundaries. 

Support and Therapy Groups:


Groups can be as effective as individual therapy. When individuals realize that they are not alone in their problems and can relate positively to others, they will often feel more confident and learn new coping strategies. If enough interest is shown, I will offer group sessions for women who are beginning to explore new options as their children grow; people struggling with anxiety, depression and other common symptoms; parents of teens; single parents; and people inhibited by social anxiety.

Parent Coaching:

At times, all parents find themselves out of ideas or energy to cope with the endless challenges of raising children. Sometimes only a few sessions are necessary to feel supported and to form a wise plan of action. For others, the challenges are more serious and require ongoing or intermittent coaching. My professional experience includes working with families facing the challenges of ADHD, adoption issues and other special needs.

Pre-Marital Couples Assessment and Counseling 

If your relationship is growing deeper and you are determined to build the kind of intimacy and connection that can stand the test of time, a couples inventory may be for you. As a certified facilitator, I can administer an online assessment, and then in about 4 to 8 sessions, we will discuss the results in detail. This is a very effective way to discover your strength and growth areas as a couple, strengthen your communication skills, learn to resolve conflict, explore family of origin issues, and other important topics. This tool can be customized for your particular situation, whether or not you are looking for traditional faith-based counseling, have children from previous relationships, or other particular situations. If your minister requires pre-marital counseling, this is an excellent way to prepare. I can schedule a consultation with your clergy at your request. 

Feel free to contact me and we'll talk about how I can help.