I draw from my study and experience in Eastern, Western and Indigenous psychologies and wisdom traditions to offer a variety of skills and modalities to support the therapeutic process. These perspectives and strategies are most frequently integrated throughout our work in ways most helpful to the counseling process.

Some modalities may be offered individually when requested, and when it might best fit your needs and goals. The decision to engage in a specific modality will always be left to you.

The following are a sampling of modalities and influences that inform my work. Please contact me if you would like more information. You may also view the Reading Suggestions and Suggested Links pages to further your exploration.


Transpersonal and Integrative Psychotherapy

Transpersonal psychology begins with the belief that humans are born intrinsically Whole, and that our human birthright is to experience a state of spaciousness, equanimity and joy. It supports the balanced development of all aspects of the human inner and outer life, including discovering and creating purpose and meaningful work.

Transpersonal psychology has also been coined, Spiritual Psychology, for it recognizes that a spiritual or wise self is at the core of our identity and the foundation from which we ultimately comprehend all other aspects of our human reality and transpersonal nature.

For some, the Wise Self is religious or spiritual in nature. It may also be more closely aligned to a deeply humanistic or even atheistic approach. In any case this wise core guides a desire toward personal development and expressing life from an inner foundation that is honest and authentic.

This positive, transpersonal view of human nature supports personal growth across the spectrum of life. It is Integrative in practice through helping you connect with your own innate gifts and strengths; AND addressing current distresses and needs with tools garnered from many traditions.

Issues considered through the lens of Transpersonal work often include spiritual inquiry and practices, creativity, peak experiences and mysticism, spiritual crisis and emergence and body-mind-spirit relationship.


Mindfulness and Contemplative Based Practices

We have countless mind states available to us. To which ones do we gravitate?

Mindfulness and Contemplation cultivates in us, a friendly curiosity that grows compassion for our human self and others.

Learning to sit still in the present moment while watching the shifting inner dance of thoughts, sensations and emotions, we become aware of our personal hooks: those places where we find ourselves caught in old habits or patterns.

Accepting first, what is present is the first step in choosing what is next. Observation allows us to discover that each breath affords an opportunity: to support our self with kindness, take the next breath and begin anew. These practices are not about fixing or changing distressing symptoms. Instead, we discover through increased awareness and self compassion, we can experience a gentle dropping away and easing of what creates suffering in us.

The Eastern and Western traditions hold numerous forms of meditation and contemplative practices. Many forms, by design are non religious and require no spiritual inclination or beliefs. Even new meditators report a number of benefits directly derived from their practice. These include improved concentration, relaxation, and enhanced ability to manage stress, more balanced emotions and feelings of calm.

Our ability to be present with whatever arises in the moment is a foundation for meaningful psychotherapy and all of life. Because awareness is the doorway to acceptance and change, meditative and awareness practices are offered from the beginning and reinforced throughout our work together.

Your own meditative or contemplative practices are welcome. If requested, I will teach some form of meditation, self-compassion or contemplation, if you do not already have a practice that is helpful to you.


Clinical Hypnotherapy

I offer Clinical Hypnotherapy as a separate modality or integrated as helpful with other therapeutic work for individual adult clients.

Young adults may also benefit from this modality for some issues.

Hypnosis and hypnotherapy are gateways into communication with the vast stores of the subconscious mind. The subconscious is considered to be the seat of emotions, imagination, memory, habits, instinct and the regulator of our autonomic body functions.

The subconscious is the core of how we experience ourselves and our world. Positive and negative messages we’ve taken in tend to filter directly into the subconscious. Here they take root and create beliefs about who we are, what we can become and how we relate to the world. We may not recognize their origin, but these subconscious beliefs are often more pervasive and powerful than the direction and will of our conscious mind.

This is why meaningful and lasting change is most likely to endure when both the subconscious and conscious minds are in agreement.

Hypnosis is a natural and pleasant state of relaxed awareness and increased suggestibility. It is not sleep or unconsciousness. You remain in control of your thoughts and can chose to move out of hypnosis at any time. However, just like choosing to become immersed in an interesting movie or book, in hypnosis, your choice is to focus on your experience and the guidance of the hypnotherapist in order to create a desired positive change.

Clinical Hypnotherapy is the combined use of both hypnosis and counseling to promote a desired outcome. I tend to use a light to medium level of trance as this state allows you to maintain verbal and nonverbal interaction while at the same time processing emotions and physical sensations.

I see this work as a collaborative process and will seek from you, specific information regarding your goals and motivation to enhance the effectiveness of the hypnotic suggestions.

Because the language of the subconscious is metaphor, imagery and symbolic language, I incorporate creative visualization and may also include myth or storytelling during the session as these modalities strengthen connection to subconscious awareness. Creative visualization is also a way to tell the story of the changes you desire in language that both subconscious and conscious minds can hear and accept.

Research has shown hypnosis to be helpful with a wide range of issues.

Please contact me to explore of this modality may be of benefit to you.


Humanistic Perspective

This perspective creates a healing container to hold the client with focused attention, empathy, acceptance and encouragement. “Being Seen” by another is a rare experience for many. The power in this experience encourages full expression of thoughts, feelings, and internal struggles. Expression without judgment supports objectivity, self compassion and the willingness to imagine and engage in new, constructive actions.

My views of this perspective are influenced by the writings of John O’Donohue and the Celtic ideal of “Anam Cara” or Soul Friend.


Depth Psychology

Depth Psychology is a broad term that refers to any psychological approach examining the depth (the subtle or unconscious parts) of human experience. “Depth” refers to what is below the surface of manifestations like behaviors, conflicts, relationship dynamics, dreams, visions and even social and political events.

Depth psychology is not specific to the theories of Carl Jung, but the language of Jungian and archetypal psychology is often used to explore methods for understanding and working with deep, soulful aspects of human life.

Depth psychology sees our symptoms, the painful and disturbing issues in our lives as gateways to the process of individuation (becoming who you uniquely are). Depth Psychology welcomes images, dreams, fantasies, symbols and creativity as harbingers of growth and direct messages from our unconscious.

Personal symptoms and conflicts contain a mythic core that when examined, can allow the meaning of the struggle to emerge. Humans are ultimately embedded in some sort of myth-making, meaning making about our lives and experiences. The richness and wonder of personal symbolic storytelling and exploration in context of collective myths, allows for an opening to understanding, insight and change.

There are many ways to nurture this inner process and I encourage clients to develop their own creative practices to support their work.


Narrative Approach

The Narrative Approach is more of philosophy than a form of therapy. It focuses on the stories in peoples lives and is based on the idea that problems are manufactured in social, cultural and political contexts and that we can never forget that the individual is woven into the greater communities that hold them. Each person produces the meaning of their life from the stories that are available in that context.

In a narrative approach, our lives and stories are seen as multi-storied. Often, by the time a person has come to therapy the stories they have for themselves and their lives become completely dominated by the problems that work to oppress them. These “problem-saturated” stories can also become identities (eg “I’ve always been a loser”).

“Re-authoring” of people’s stories is a collaboration of stepping away from problem saturated stories to discovering the “untold” story which includes the preferred accounts of people’s lives: their intentions, hopes, values, desires and dreams.

The opportunity to view our personal history as one story can help us more easily imagine alternative storylines. I have found that incorporating “teaching tales,” poetry, folklore and mythology can also help the individual imagine positive ways of re-authoring their biography.


Existential Psychotherapy

Existential Psychotherapy focuses on the ways in which you make meaning in your life. It is an interactive process exploring past, present and future, personal values, morals and ideals. This approach questions the assumptions, biases, judgments you hold about yourself and others. It explores both the possibilities and limitations of human life and does not shy away from questions of injustice, pain and death.

It seeks to support your process is coming to some understanding of personal experience, especially in the context of what you may have no power to control.


Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT is based on the theory that how you think and how you act, have a significant impact on how you feel. Negative self talk is often automatic and scripted from inaccurate thoughts or beliefs. CBT strategies teach you to become aware of and challenge these limiting mental constructions.

Many CBT techniques are fairly easy to learn though they do require diligence to effect change. These skills can be applied to redirect your attention and thinking into more life-affirming views of yourself, others and life events. Ability to notice and redirect your thoughts builds confidence in managing reactivity to strong emotional states (such as anxiety, panic, PTSD symptoms and others) and physical distresses. These skills are also extremely important in building communication skills and positive relationships.


Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)

SFBT attends to present time and extends positive solutions into the future. It helps you create a preferred future view, installs skills, and develops resources to move you toward the vision of who or what you want to become.

This therapy is highly strength based and concrete. It focuses on potential solutions, creation of practical steps upon a hopeful and creative foundation. This work is usually time limited. It may also be returned to during phases of the long term therapeutic process to strategize and empower a specific goal.


Pathways to Spiritual Healing

The world view of many indigenous cultures is that everything that exists is alive, has the ability to communicate and form relationship. An energetic web connects all life and spirit lives in all things.

Doorways into non-ordinary consciousness co-exist alongside of “ordinary reality.” These doorways lead to awareness states where information for spiritual healing might be discovered, to empower and restore harmony and balance to an individual or community.

This Pathway holds beliefs and practices that have been called “Shamanic,” through others’ observations of its forms or philosophy.

The origin of every culture contains elements of a Shamanic Spirituality or Personal Mysticism that guides humans to return to right relationship and harmony within themselves, and into sacred relationship with their near environments, earth and spirit.

This path is based in Humility, Reverence and Self-Discipline. It fosters conscious responsibility for oneself and active acceptance of one’s part in caring for the greater family of creation. It teaches and strengthens direct personal pathways for obtaining wisdom and guidance in support of our personal and collective soul journey.

I was called to this pathway early in life. I offer gratitude for the sharing and teachings from Ancestors and Elders of many clans, nations and lands, especially those from the Hawai’ian and Celtic Traditions.

Please Ask if You are Interested in this Pathway.