Art therapy is a mental health profession in which clients, facilitated by the art therapist, use art media, the creative process, and the resulting artwork to explore their feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, manage behavior and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce anxiety, and increase self-esteem. A goal in art therapy is to improve or restore a client's functioning and their sense of personal well-being. Art therapy requires that the therapist have deep knowledge of visual art (drawing, painting, sculpture, and other art forms) and the creative process, as well as of human development, psychological, and counseling theories and techniques. The client, however, needn’t have any experience with the above in order to experience benefits; art therapists seek to foster the inherent creativity of their clients, and offer success-oriented processes that are accessible to all.

Art therapy is a treatment of choice for a wide range of populations, and is practiced in a number of settings (e.g. hospitals, psychiatric and rehabilitation facilities, wellness centers, forensic institutions, schools, crisis centers, senior communities, private practice, and other clinical and community settings). Art therapy is also particularly indicated for individuals who have experienced trauma.

If art therapy is of interest to you, I look forward to exploring it together.

Additional Resources:

American Art Therapy Association

Art Therapy Credentials Board

Mindfulness, mindful living, mind/body alignment…fortunately, these terms–and the pursuit of feeling more grounded and grateful moment to moment–are increasingly commonplace in today’s world. Meanings and methods, however, can get skewed– and attempts to develop and maintain a mindfulness routine can often result in counterintuitive results, leaving us comparing ourselves to others and feeling overwhelmed. My goal is to partner with clients to help them define mindfulness for themselves. The contribution I offer is that mindfulness can be many things indeed, but it is always a practice; we must come back to it, again and again, and it is never perfect. We will examine breath and movement, explore skills for present-moment awareness, and address pillars of wellbeing such as rest and nutrition to craft the mindfulness practices that are right for you.

Additional Resources:

Dr. Kristin Neff

Tara Brach

As Deb Dana explains, a Polyvagal lens enables the understanding that actions are automatic and adaptive, generated by the autonomic nervous system well below the level of conscious awareness. What this means is that whereas we absolutely have the agency of choice, there are powerful autonomic energies that are constantly in the service of our bodily protection. The nervous system is responsive, and with awareness and attunement to this complex system, we can come into better balance with ourselves, each other, and our environment. I am particularly interested in polyvagal theory and its implications for anxiety, depression, and the trauma response. I invite clients to understand that their bodies and brains are constantly scanning, constantly readying for rest or action, connection or protection, constantly making major and/or minute biological adjustments. Together we can work to attune to our nervous systems with care, and without judgment.

Additional Resources:

Rhythm of Regulation

Psychoeducation, broadly speaking, is the combination of health psychology and behavioral counseling to help clients gain deeper knowledge and awareness of their bodies and minds. I use psychoeducation as a way to help clients feel fully informed without feeling overwhelmed. Together, we will gather and discern the information available to us, whether it’s about a particular diagnosis, a developmental process, neurobiological research, or other phenomena. The skillful use of psychoeducation in psychotherapy can help a client feel more empowered, and more sturdily at the helm of their own treatment. It is my experience that this can be particularly impactful for my teenage clients, as well as their parents. On many levels, teens are acutely aware of the radical and disruptive changes of adolescence, but rarely are they attuned to the ins and outs, the whys and whens. I like to help all of my clients bolster their self understanding with concrete information— as Dan Siegel says, “using science to bring more empathy and understanding.”

Additional Resources:

Dr. Dan Siegel

CBT is a method of treatment aimed to identify and address distressing thoughts and behaviors, and using tools such as reframing, de-catastrophizing, and exposure to bring about greater comfort and ease in daily life. Further, CBT can help to build resilience and tolerance for when challenges inevitably occur. CBT is what is referred to as an “evidence-based treatment;” this means that the method is heavily researched and studied, and there is a large body of evidence demonstrating its efficacy in treatment. Many centers and practices are set up to offer manualized CBT programs. I do not solely offer CBT, but rather aim to integrate the wisdom of CBT tools with other methods to best meet my clients’ unique and individual needs.

Additional Resources:

National Institutes of Health

DBT is also what is termed an “evidence-based treatment.” It was developed by the psychologist Marsha Linehan, with the goal of treating borderline personality disorder, a diagnosis she lives with herself. DBT is demonstrated to help people–those with and those without BPD–who struggle with black-and-white thinking or extreme difficulty with change, for example, and need to learn how to hold multiple truths at once. Bringing together frameworks from CBT with the traditions of mindful awareness practices, DBT comprises four modules: mindfulness, emotional regulation, distress tolerance, and interpersonal effectiveness. In my work, I integrate tools from each module to meet a client’s treatment goals. If a client could benefit from an immersive and complete DBT protocol, I provide thoughtful referrals to appropriate programs.

Additional Resources:

The New York Times

Sometimes, the space of therapy is adequate to meet one’s mental health and wellness needs. Other times, it is through the process of therapy that one may discover the need for or openness to other modalities and mechanisms of treatment and support. I collaborate with a multitude of other providers– from psychiatrists and other medical professionals, to nutritionists, acupuncturists, functional medicine practitioners, occupational therapists, yoga therapists, and more. I am committed to helping my clients build out the support networks they need, while remaining ever mindful of access and resources.