Individuals

NOTE: I am not taking new clients.

Each of us needs someone to bear witness to the core stories of our lives, and to help us make sense of why our life looks and feels the way it does. By looking at your story and life experiences, you can understand how you came to think, feel, and relate to others in the way that you do. Looking at the particularity of your story—especially the places where you were harmed—can (surprisingly) lead to increased freedom, hope, and joy.

No one makes it to adulthood without experiencing harm. Many people are quite willing to name the ways they have done harm to others, but sometimes it can be harder to name the ways we have been harmed.

Once our heart is wounded, we often begin living in ways that promise to relieve the pain and assure that we will never be hurt that way again. Neuroscience has demonstrated that your past experiences in life become a filter through which you see and experience everything in the present.

Counseling is about looking at how the story of your past is currently influencing the way you live your life. William Faulkner said it well, “The past isn’t dead; it’s not even past.”

Since it is truth that sets us free, much of counseling is about naming what has been true in your life, both for good and for ill. It’s nearly impossible to live in freedom without identifying how you have been harmed, as well as how you have done harm (to others and yourself). Therapy can help you name the beauty and brokenness of your own story, which can lead to much deeper connection with others.

Every one of us needs to “feel felt.”You feel felt when another person is so exquisitely attuned to you that you are truly seen and understood. In that relational environment, you can experience deep heart change. When you begin to honestly share your story, and find that you are truly heard by another, a new freedom and vitality comes into your life.