Seeking Therapy
Often, we are in predicaments where we are overwhelmed, and don't understand why we are suffering, nor why we have been singled out for a particular fate. We turn to therapy demoralized, in possession perhaps of negative beliefs and fears about ourselves. These beliefs arise from trauma, whether direct and obvious ,or more subtle (such as humiliation and shame).
Common reasons people try therapy with me are:
loss or grief
crisis in relationships
mood disorders
anxiety
personality patterns
sexual or gender issues including transgender
eating disorders
medical illness or reproductive failure
compulsivity
isolation
hallucinogenic assisted therapy
attachment
How Therapy Works
I believe that we all have unconscious desires to master difficulties, and we have unrealized plans of how to overcome them. Since we are deeply social beings, when at an impasse, we try out those ideas in an experimental context we call therapy.
There, we use the emotional connection we carefully forge with the therapist, testing ourselves as well as the therapist.
Tolerating extraordinary circumstances as well as everyday difficulties with fewer symptoms is, of course, optimal. But the goal of treatment reaches further than that: ultimately we wish for a creative and meaningful involvement in our own lives, and even strive toward that. We have this capacity regardless of the pain and the limitations constraining us.
I pay particular attention to the shaping effects of class, gender, and ethnicity.
For more about my approach, please turn to Background.
Welcome to my website. Here you
will find information about :
therapy and mental health
my background
my therapeutic approach
I work with adults, older adolescents, and couples. The goodness of fit between a person and their therapist often determines how effective the therapy will be regardless of the type of training and approach. However, how confident you are about the therapist contributes to a good outcome, and I hope this website guides you in your choice.
210 W. Galer St. Seattle, WA 98119 (206) 283-9637 helene@helenerussphd.com
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