Services
Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis is a form of psychotherapy that works by addressing the underlying causes of psychological symptoms and relationship issues. It has been proven successful through a number of clinical trials in the treatment of depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, PTSD and psychotic disorders such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Patients often report experiencing lasting benefits beyond symptom relief to a more stable sense of well-being.
Dubbed “the talking cure” by one of its earliest patients, psychoanalysis works via the process of free association, whereby patients are encouraged to say whatever is on their mind. This deceptively simple, subtly powerful process allows for a clearer view of the unconscious inner conflict leading to one’s symptoms or problematic behavior.
As a psychoanalyst, I’m interested in your personal history: the environment in which you grew up, your primary caretakers, siblings and family history both as a way of understanding the world you were born into and how you came to navigate it. I’m also interested in what’s going on in your current life, your day-to-day experiences and your thoughts and feelings. I’m interested in your dreams, both in terms of the ones you have at night and the ones that express what you want for yourself. Among all of this, I’m interested in hearing what you think and how you express yourself both in what you say and how you say it. All of my interventions are geared toward helping you hear yourself more clearly and, importantly, more compassionately.
Psychoanalysis is, ultimately, a creative process. While one must spend a considerable amount of time digging through the psyche, discerning what has happened and how one has responded in conscious and unconscious ways, through it all one finds an embodied relationship to one’s own humanness and desire, which aids in the ability to recognize the humanness of others. The information thus gleaned from psychoanalysis helps one navigate the complexities of life and relationships with a sense of direction, empathy and purpose.
When undergoing psychoanalytic treatment, patients often have sessions 3-4 times per week for several years. While psychoanalysis requires a considerable investment of time and money, patients find their investment pays dividends, as it not only provides relief from symptoms but also facilitates a deep and lasting sense of well-being.
In life, there is perhaps nothing more valuable.
Couples Therapy
Freud tells us, “the unconscious of one human being can react on that of another without passing into consciousness.” As a trained analyst, I pay particular attention in couples therapy to how unconscious dynamics inform the relationship. For example, often people have pre-determined, unconscious ways of viewing others, and—also unconsciously—conform to these perceptions. If the other is unconsciously expected, the one may act in ways to subjugate oneself to this expectation. All may seem fine until you realize you’re in a rut, prisoner to these expectations and unable any longer to find joy in your relationship.
Couples therapy can help partners identify and take ownership of the ways they unconsciously contribute to the relationship dynamic, and make changes in themselves for the good of the partnership.
Adolescents and Teenagers
Adolescence is a crucial time of life. Bodies change, sexuality blooms, and authority shifts from the parents to the social group. Gauging how to respond to the implicit external demand—and inner desire—to conform to this authority while at the same time seeking self-definition is intense and confusing. Questions of what it means to be man or woman or gender-queer weigh heavily during the time of adolescence. Above all, however, adolescents must grapple with the disconcerting fact that the world as it was presented to them by their parents, and as they believed during childhood, is quite different and, often, more sinister.
They must find themselves, and find the desire to carry on and mark their place in society. Therapy offers a private space for them to do so, a place that is neither parental nor social, a place where they can be themselves, speak freely, and develop their own truth.
Alongside the changes their adolescents are going through, parents can sometimes feel like they’re losing the child they thought they knew. They have to contend with these personal losses while supporting an almost radically new person over whom they must retain some authority. It’s almost never easy, and while many hit their stride eventually, talking about this transition with a trained professional can help.
Consultation and Supervision
Including my own time in training, I’ve been practicing psychotherapy since 2006. I’ve had the pleasure and benefit of working with several excellent clinicians, and have long-standing work relationships with a few of them. If you’re a student interested in learning more about psychoanalysis, or if you’re otherwise interested in developing as a clinician in the Freudian or Lacanian tradition, I’d be happy to speak with you.
Book a Consultation
Interested in speaking? Click this button to send a message and I’ll get back to you soon.