It's not easy to ask for help.
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Therapy is a relationship and a collaborative process; one that allows you to gain new perspectives in life and helps you move forward.
Whether you've been in therapy before, or this will be your first time; it is important to feel safe and comfortable enough to talk about things that are causing distress to yourself, or to your family.
Change happens when there is a mutual connection between us. Are you experiencing life changes, decisions, challenges, trauma, illnesses, or disabilities? Are you looking for a way to cope with anxiety or depression? Do you have nightmares or trouble sleeping? Maybe you have experienced the loss of someone close to you or a job, or a beloved pet. Or you are just plain stressed out. All the time. Within the therapeutic process, we will build trust through a collaborative relationship. In this process, it is possible to find emotional balance, learn, develop and feel empowered to make choices that will allow you to make satisfying positive changes in your life. As a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and Art Therapist and Board Certified Art Therapist, my focus is on helping you to find emotional outlets, create support systems, and gain insight into what has been creating depression or anxiety or other disorder in your life, or in the life of your teen or pre-teen. I am trained in a wide range of therapeutic approaches, and will tailor our sessions to meet your individual needs. I treat individuals and families; teens, transition-age youth (18-24), and adults. My clinical approaches include Neurodevelopmental Art Therapy (NDAT) with bilateral restructuring, Mindfulness-Based Art Therapy (MBAT) with breathing and meditation techniques, and the metaphor-based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). I also teach mindful self-compassion which is strongly predictive of well-being, and lower levels of anxiety and depression. The emotional right brain is dominant in all forms of psychotherapy which is especially true in child and adolescent therapies. I also incorporate art making, journaling, mindful awareness, guided imagery, and other creative coping skills designed to empower you beyond the therapy session. No artistic talent is needed to participate in Art Therapy, only a willingness to suspend self-criticism and judgment, and to trust your own intuition. |
Christiana struggled with depression in high school and found it hard to open up during talk therapy. So she began working with an art therapist at Children's Hospital Colorado and learned to deal with her emotions through art.
Whether it's visual media, expressive writing, music, movement or performance - all the arts are able to change our perspectives, moods, relationships and overall health. Through research, psychotherapists, scientists and physicians are working toward broadening awareness of the power of art to discover, explore and share what is most important to us as individuals and ultimately through that process, to heal.
The Foundation For Art & Healing Dr. Bruce Moon, ATR-BC, HLM and Priscilla Frank from the Huffington Post examine how art therapy can help adolescents address themes of expression and identity.
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