INDIVIDUAL THERAPY

Some people seek therapy in response to a recent crisis in their lives.  Others, who have considered it for a long time, now feel ready to explore an issue from their past.  Timing is very important and the fact that you are on my website suggests you may be ready to take the next step.

Psychotherapy can be useful when something in your life feels difficult to change—even when you understand intellectually what is happening. You may be struggling with anxiety or depression, a relationship, a major transition, or patterns that seem to repeat despite your best efforts.

My approach is psychodynamic and relational. Together, we look beyond immediate symptoms to understand the emotional and interpersonal patterns underlying your difficulties. This deeper understanding can create new possibilities for how you experience yourself, relate to others, and navigate your life.

You don't have to be in crisis to benefit from therapy. Many people seek therapy when something in their lives no longer feels quite right, even when they are functioning well in other areas. You may be struggling with anxiety or depression, feeling stuck in a relationship or career, experiencing a difficult transition, or finding yourself repeating patterns you don't fully understand.

Often, people already have considerable insight into their difficulties. They know what they should do, yet find that understanding something intellectually doesn't necessarily make it easier to change. Therapy can provide an opportunity to look more deeply at the patterns that shape how you experience yourself, relate to others, and respond to the challenges in your life.

My approach is psychodynamic and relational, with an emphasis on understanding the emotional and interpersonal patterns underlying your concerns. Rather than focusing only on the immediate problem, we explore how your current experiences may be connected to earlier relationships, experiences, expectations, and ways of understanding yourself.

The relationship between therapist and patient is also an important part of this work. Together, we pay attention to what emerges in the therapy itself, using it to better understand how you experience closeness, conflict, vulnerability, trust, and other aspects of relationships.

This deeper understanding can create possibilities for responding differently—to difficult emotions, relationships, decisions, and situations that may have felt difficult to change.

People come to therapy for many different reasons. Some are experiencing a specific difficulty, while others have a more general sense that something needs to change.

I work with adults experiencing:

• Anxiety, worry, or feeling overwhelmed
• Depression or a persistent sense of dissatisfaction
• Relationship and interpersonal difficulties
• Problems with intimacy, connection, or loneliness
• Self-esteem and self-confidence concerns
• Major life transitions
• Career and professional concerns
• Difficulties managing emotions or recurring patterns of behavior
• Questions about identity, sexuality, and relationships
• A desire to better understand themselves and their relationships

You do not need to have a clear diagnosis or a neatly defined problem before beginning therapy. Sometimes the most useful place to start is simply with a sense that something isn't working and a desire to understand why.

Relief from anxiety, depression, or relationship difficulties is important. But meaningful change often involves understanding what lies beneath the immediate problem.

Our work may help you recognize patterns that have developed over time and understand how they continue to influence the way you think, feel, and relate to others. With greater awareness, it can become possible to approach relationships, emotions, and choices with greater flexibility and a stronger sense of yourself.

Many of my patients are accomplished professionals balancing demanding careers, relationships, family responsibilities, and high expectations of themselves. Even when things appear to be going well, the pressures of work and achievement can leave little space to understand what is happening emotionally or relationally.

Therapy can provide a place to step outside those demands, slow down, and consider experiences and patterns that may be difficult to see while you're in the middle of them.

I have particular experience working with gay men and with the ways that relationships, identity, sexuality, family, career, and self-image can intersect throughout adult life.  Some concerns are universal, while others are shaped by the experience of growing up and living as a gay man. Therapy can provide a place to explore these experiences openly, including aspects of your life that may be difficult to discuss elsewhere.

[Learn more about Therapy for Gay Men]

The first step is a 15-minute complimentary telephone consultation. This gives us an opportunity to talk about what brings you to therapy, what you hope to accomplish, and whether my approach may be a good fit for you. 

If you would like to connect, contact me at 914.830.9171 or [Contact Me].

I am a psychotherapist and relational psychoanalyst with more than two decades of clinical experience working with individuals and couples. My training includes psychodynamic psychotherapy at NYU and advanced postgraduate psychoanalytic study and certification. In addition to my private practice, I am an Executive Director of a psychoanalytic training institute--involved in the post-graduate training and supervision of clinicians.