Psychodynamic Therapy
What is a psychodynamic approach to therapy?
Psychodynamic psychotherapy is a powerful and transformative approach to therapy that delves deep into the roots of your emotional struggles. Unlike surface-level treatments, this therapy focuses on understanding the unconscious influences, past experiences, and deep-seated emotions that shape your current thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
Through this process, you’ll gain profound insights into the patterns and dynamics that have been affecting your life, often without your awareness. This deeper understanding allows for meaningful and lasting change, helping you to break free from negative cycles, improve your relationships, and achieve greater emotional well-being.
In our sessions, we will work together to explore your inner world, uncover hidden conflicts, and resolve past traumas. By addressing these underlying issues, you can develop a stronger sense of self, better coping mechanisms, and a more fulfilling and authentic life.
If you’re ready to embark on a journey of self-discovery and lasting transformation, psychodynamic psychotherapy can offer the tools and support you need to achieve true emotional freedom and personal growth.
What I Offer
As a psychodynamic psychotherapist, I provide a safe and supportive space for you to explore the deeper layers of your psyche. My approach is grounded in understanding the unconscious influences and past experiences that shape your current emotions and behaviors.
I specialize in helping clients navigate:
Psychodynamic & Existential Therapy
Explore the deeper roots of emotional patterns while developing a stronger sense of meaning, identity, and self-understanding.
Self-Worth & Inner Healing
Work through shame, perfectionism, people-pleasing, and anxiety to build a more secure and compassionate relationship with yourself.
Attachment & Relational Patterns
Understand how attachment wounds shape your relationships, improve communication, and develop healthier boundaries and patterns of connection.
Adult Family Therapy Issues
Navigate estrangement, communication challenges, changing family roles, and longstanding patterns within parent-adult child and other family relationships.
Grief and Loss Psychotherapy
Receive specialized support for bereavement, living loss, health or identity changes, major transitions, and other meaningful forms of loss.
Grief Support
Groups
Join a relational 10-week educational and therapeutic group designed to support shared understanding, connection, and healing through grief.
Through our work together, you will gain profound insights into your inner world, allowing for meaningful and lasting change. My goal is to help you achieve greater emotional well-being, develop healthier relationships, and live a more fulfilling life.
I am deeply committed to creating an inclusive and culturally competent therapeutic environment. I respect and honor the diverse backgrounds and experiences of my clients, ensuring that therapy is sensitive to cultural, racial, gender, and sexual identity considerations. My practice is a safe and welcoming space where all clients can feel seen, heard, and valued.
In our work together, I strive to understand your unique perspective and experiences, integrating culturally relevant practices and addressing systemic issues that may impact your mental health. By fostering an environment of inclusivity and respect, I aim to support your journey towards healing and personal growth in a way that is meaningful and affirming to you.
Therapeutic Approach and Modalities
As a psychodynamic psychotherapist, I am committed to providing a comprehensive and inclusive approach to therapy, tailored to meet the unique needs of each client. While psychodynamic therapy forms the foundation of my practice, I incorporate a variety of therapeutic modalities to enhance the healing process and address specific concerns.
Integrated Modalities
- Somatic Approaches: Recognizing the profound connection between mind and body, I use somatic techniques to help clients become more attuned to their physical sensations and release stored tension and trauma.
- Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): For clients struggling with emotional regulation and interpersonal effectiveness, I integrate DBT techniques, which emphasize mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal skills.
- Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT): CFT helps clients cultivate self-compassion and reduce self-criticism, fostering a kinder and more supportive relationship with themselves.
- Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT): An attachment-based approach that helps clients better understand their emotional needs and recurring relationship patterns. It supports greater emotional awareness and more secure ways of relating to oneself and others.
- Polyvagal Techniques: By applying polyvagal theory, I assist clients in understanding and regulating their nervous system responses, promoting a sense of safety and connection.
Effectiveness of Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
Long-term
Benefits:
A comprehensive review published in The American Psychologist found that the benefits of psychodynamic therapy extend well beyond the end of treatment. The review, which analyzed 23 studies, showed that patients continued to improve even after therapy ended (Shedler, 2010). The analysis found that the degree of improvement for psychodynamic therapy was 0.97, compared to 0.31 for other therapies, indicating significant and lasting benefits.
Symptom
Improvement:
Research published in Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics reviewed studies on the effectiveness of long-term psychodynamic therapy and found it to be effective in treating complex mental health issues, including personality disorders, with significant improvements in symptoms, interpersonal functioning, and overall well-being (Leichsenring & Rabung, 2008).
Effectiveness on Anxiety & Depression:
Psychodynamic psychotherapy has been shown to be effective for treating depression, anxiety, and grief. This type of therapy can help people understand and resolve deep-seated emotional issues that often underlie these conditions. For depression, psychodynamic therapy helps people work through unresolved grief and internal conflicts that contribute to their symptoms. It also provides benefits for anxiety by addressing unconscious feelings and thoughts that fuel worry and fear.
Overall
Effectiveness:
Research has shown that psychodynamic therapy is effective for many mental health problems. A review published in Clinical Psychology Review looked at several studies where people received this type of therapy. It found that psychodynamic therapy helps with issues like depression, anxiety, and physical symptoms linked to emotional stress. The therapy showed moderate to large improvements in people's mental health.
Fee Structure:
Individual Psychotherapy: $170/ per 50 minute session
Adult Family Therapy: $200 per session
Initial consultation: Complimentary