"The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change."
- Carl Rogers
Specialties.
Prenatal, Perinatal & Postpartum Mood Issues.
Pregnancy and childbirth can either cause or exacerbate underlying depression, anxiety, or OCD. Postpartum depression occurs in about 12% of women nationally, and 15% of women in the state of Michigan (2019 CDC PRAMS data). Risk factors for developing postpartum depression can include low social support, difficulty getting pregnant, previous history of depression, delivering preterm (<37 weeks), pregnancy complications, and having a baby who has been hospitalized. Postpartum anxiety and anxiety while pregnant can occur in as many as 10% of women. It can look like constant, uncontrollable anxiety, panic attacks, or obsessions and/or compulsions. The good news is that prenatal, perinatal, and postpartum mood issues are treatable through psychotherapy. Start the therapy early in your journey if you think you’re at risk or notice any symptoms.
Miscarriage & Loss.
Having a pregnancy loss can feel like isolating and lonely. While 1/5 women experience a miscarriage, it is still not talked about enough to make the greater public understand how devastating it can be. It often leaves women feeling guilty, questioning what they did to cause the loss, worrying that they will not be able to get pregnant again, and fearing they will lose a future pregnancy. Therapy can help process the feelings of the loss and prepare for the feelings that could arise in a future pregnancy.
Depression & Anxiety.
Depression and anxiety are two of the most common issues that bring people to therapy. Both are exhausting in their own ways. Anxiety may feel like a mind that never stops running with thoughts, panic attacks, or a constant worry about many areas of your life. Depression can feel like a difficulty finding joy in life, irritability, low self-esteem, or irrational guilt. Therapy can help alleviate those symptoms by discovering ways to cope and exploring the root issues for some of these struggles.
Relationships.
Do you feel like you and your partner struggle with communication? Do you feel disconnected? Are you dealing with a major life transition? Did someone in the relationship cheat? Couples therapy can be a safe place to talk about issues that couples struggle to talk about themselves. Couples therapy can also be helpful to couples planning to get married or those who want to use therapy as a preventative tool.
Grief.
You may feel like a shell of yourself after losing someone close and feel overwhelmed by various and confusing emotions. Will I ever be happy again? Am I grieving correctly? How can I be mad at someone who's passed? All of these questions will be explored in therapy. Therapy can help you have a healthy grieving process while understanding aspects of your personality that may make different aspects of the grieving process more or less difficult than others.
Stress.
Stress afflicts everyone, but if it's getting in the way of you living life, then it becomes problematic. Therapy can help you find ways to relax, cope with the stress, and structure your life in a way to minimize the impact of stress.