INDIVIDUAL THERAPY – OLDER ADOLESCENTS, MEN & WOMEN
MARRIAGE AND COUPLES COUNSELING
MIDLIFE TRANSITION – MEN AND WOMEN
PREGNANCY AND POSTPARTUM SERVICES
ADDICTION RECOVERY
Individual Therapy – Older Adolescents, Men & Women
Individual psychotherapy offers an opportunity to change behavioral patterns or beliefs about ourselves that no longer work and find new effective ways of approaching life situations. Often clients will come in feeling stuck, knowing intellectually what the problems are but are unable to know how to make changes.
Individuals often seek therapy because:
- They are experiencing depression, anxiety or panic attacks.
- They are having difficulties in relationships.
- They are experiencing low self esteem and low self confidence.
- They are feeling overwhelmed.
- They are going through a life transition and experiencing stress or confusion.
- They have recently experienced a loss.
- They have experienced a past or recent trauma.
We create meaning in our lives and develop ways of relating based on our life experiences. We often reach a point in time where those ways of thinking, those defenses, negative beliefs about ourselves are no longer needed and can cause distress. Our self confidence may suffer as a result. Relationships personally and or professionally may be negatively affected.
Therapy is a place to explore these patterns and beliefs, identify and share your feelings openly and gain self awareness which allows for positive change and healing. Through this process you will learn that you have many different choices that you can make which paves the way to have a more meaningful and satisfying life.
Marriage and Couples Counseling
Following are just a few examples of why couples may seek counseling.
- They may be experiencing problems communicating and are not feeling listened to or understood. They find themselves stuck in the same patterns of arguing and are not able to resolve their differences.
- They may be seeking support in dealing with a loss.
- They may be dealing with intimacy problems and/or infidelity and wish to understand how they arrived at this place and make positive changes going forward.
- They may be considering separation or divorce.
- They may be experiencing adjustment to a recent medical diagnosis or have health concerns.
- They may have differing approaches to parenting which can cause conflict.
Couples counseling focuses both on the relationship between the two individuals as well as the individual issues that each member brings into the relationship.
Through the therapy process, problems areas are first identified, goals are established and communication skills are enhanced to facilitate problem solving in a safe and supportive manner. Treatment goals are decided on collaboratively and tailored specifically to your situation.
Family of origin issues and relationships are often explored as ways of understanding how those experiences may have provided a blueprint for the current relationship.
Couples counseling can greatly improve the relationship by providing effective ways to communicate so that the needs and concerns of both individuals are addressed and a deeper respect and understanding of each other occurs. Through a stronger bond, trust and compassion for each other you will have the resources to handle whatever comes your way.
Midlife Transition – Men & Women
As we know, the Baby Boomer generation has now approached the transition brought on by midlife. Men and women are redefining this period of their life in ways that are very different from the generation before.
Children leaving home, physical changes and health concerns, career dissatisfaction, death of a spouse or parent, and marital problems to name a few catalysts, cause some individuals to rethink how they want to spend this next chapter of their lives. For some this is an easy time and for others it is a time to redefine themselves, reconnect with their passions and make significant changes
Individuals seek support during this time because:
- They are adjusting to the “empty nest” and it’s affects on one’s sense of purpose and identity and the marital relationship.
- They are coping with personal health concerns or health concerns of a family member.
- They are grieving a loss.
- They are experiencing job or career dissatisfaction.
- They are adjusting to changing family relationships with adult children, or ageing parents.
Therapy during this time offers the opportunity to talk about and make sense of the very confusing emotional reactions that you might be having in relationship to the changes that are occurring. Once you paint a picture of the scenario, you will be able to view varying perspectives, make adjustments and create a new vision for this chapter in your life
Pregnancy and Postpartum Services
In order to have a healthy pregnancy, a woman’s emotional health is as critical as her medical health. The decision to become a parent and pregnancy are life changing events. It is a significant turning point in a woman’s life and a normative time of change.
Women and couples seek counseling for the following:
- Adjustment to the pregnancy
- High Risk Pregnancy
- Infertility – addressing the “emotional roller coaster”, grief and loss
- Miscarriage
- Neonatal loss
- Postpartum adjustment
- Relationship concerns
- Depression, anxiety, panic attacks which can occur during pregnancy and postpartum (up to one year after the baby is born)
Postpartum depression (PPD) and other postpartum mood disorders are very common, very treatable and not a woman’s fault. PPD affects up to 15% of women after they give birth.
It is often confusing for families to determine if a woman is experiencing postpartum blues or postpartum depression and/or anxiety. A thorough evaluation by a clinician trained in mood disorders during pregnancy and postpartum will provide support, information and a specific treatment plan for the woman and her family.
The following websites offer information and support for woman and their families during the postpartum period.
- Postpartum Support International (PSI) www.postpartum.net
- Joan Getz-Heller, RN, LCSW is the Colorado State Coordinator for PSI and the PSI Mountain Regional Coordinator for the states of Colorado, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho
- http://mededppd.org MedEdPPD.org is a Web site developed with the support of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to provide education about postpartum depression.
Sobriety is the only the first step in the journey of recovery from addictions. Recovery is an ongoing process for the individual and family members. In the early stage of recovery, abstinence, relapse prevention and management of cravings are the focus. Following completion of a residential inpatient treatment program, individuals are faced with staying sober, coping with changing relationships and living life without addiction.
Individuals seek support during this time to address:
- Challenges of recovery and sobriety
- Continual work on relapse prevention
- Building and strengthening support networks
- Development of healthy behaviors in interpersonal relationships
- Identifying and learning how best to manage different emotions
- Discovery of their strengths in relationships and approaches to personal and work life
- Conflict resolution
Individual, couples and family therapy can be extremely helpful as part of a comprehensive treatment approach to maintaining sobriety and living a full and satisfying life.