Family Systems Therapy:

My early training in Family Systems Therapy helps me to see all my counseling work in a broader context, whether I am working with an individual, couple or the whole family. Two post-graduate years of intensive training in family systems through the Family Institute of Cambridge, and with Dr. Salvador Minuchin, gave me a solid grounding in a variety of theories and methods. The method I draw from most is Emotionally Focused Therapy or EFT, developed by Susan Johnson. The research validating this method is extensive and I have found it to be powerfully effective. For more information, please click on the link to the the local center where I was trained the Washington Baltimore Center for EFT, or go to the International Center for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy, ICEEFT.

I thoroughly enjoy working with families and couples at all stages of life, as I help people make needed changes with as much grace and humor and affection as possible. I especially love helping couples with young children make the challenging and fulfilling transition into parenthood. In my work with young adults I witness and guide them and their families as they launch into the world.

The Enneagram Personality Typing System: 

This nine-pointed personality typing system (pronounced ‘any a gram’) has become one of the most useful tools for my practice. This system identifies nine basic personality types and the ways they each tend to get stuck emotionally. I find this approach uncanny in its accuracy and tremendously useful, as it helps me help my clients zero in on the most effective ways of getting unstuck. For more information go to the Narrative Enneagram where I completed my certification as an Enneagram teacher. For a discussion group about the Enneagram, you can also click on the Facebook page hosted by our local chapter of the International Enneagram Association where I served as a founding board member. 

Mindfulness and Spirituality:

Research on mindfulness and its role in promoting both emotional and physical health has grown significantly in recent decades. Study after study shows that learning to pay attention to our experience and practicing being present in the moment generate effective and lasting changes. In addition to my personal explorations in meditation and mindfulness practices, I have come to incorporate the development of mindfulness as a central cornerstone of my work. I particularly enjoy assisting clients in co-creating mindfulness practices that are personalized to their struggles and strengths.

I also welcome exploration of religious and spiritual values in the context of therapy. Part of my personal faith is a deep respect for the diversity of religious views and spiritual experiences represented in our community. I am careful to attend to my clients' beliefs and religious commitments, and not to impose my own. I approach this subject gently and with great care, leaving room for it to be discussed openly when such conversation would be welcomed and would aid our work together.