Gestalt Therapy

I am a graduate of the Gestalt Institute of New England. I have four years of postgraduate training in Gestalt psychotherapy.

“Gestalt therapy is about helping people become aware of what they do and how they do it, and to encourage living in the present, to ‘be here now,’ and make better choices.” – Violet Oaklander. In Gestalt therapy, I use talk or play to help you or your child experience, explore, and process thoughts, feelings and sensations to bring greater awareness, self-understanding and empowerment. I am not an ‘expert’ but a partner on your journey, in the process with you every step of the way.

Sometimes just talking about a problem doesn't quite get the job done. By engaging in "safe experiments" in session, Gestalt therapy helps us to release ourselves from the bondage of old emotional wounds.

Gestalt is an experiential, relational approach which uses the present moment to guide the session. It is a collaborative process between client and therapist, allowing the therapeutic relationship to serve as a safe and healing space for the client. Gestalt creates an opportunity for the client to have a new experience through the metabolization of trauma. We do this attending to the physical manifestations of the trauma in real time.

My relationship with Gestalt-therapy comes from early as 2007. I am specialized in this theory and have certifications from different institutes. Gestalt is a way to see the client and their experiences in the present and help them to notice how they live with themselves in the here and now. I offer the client the possibility to expand their awareness about themselves and the world. That information is key to improve their ability to make changes if that is what they want to do.

In Gestalt psychotherapy, we bring attention to your present moment experience, the therapist–client relationship, environmental and social contexts, and the myriad of adjustments we make from moment to moment to bring to light beliefs and ways of being that are not in our awareness but are deeply impacting our behavior and choices. We engage in real-time therapeutic experiments to deepen our awareness + try out new behaviors to co-create organic coping skills.

I recently completed a 3 year certification program in Gestalt therapy. Gestalt therapy is a client-centered approach to psychotherapy that helps clients focus on the present and understand what is really happening in their lives right now, rather than what they may perceive to be happening based on past experience.

I completed my year long practicum training with clients practicing Gestalt Therapy at the Church Street Integral Counseling Center. I have hundreds of hours of Gestalt Therapy training and practice .

Gestalt therapy is a relational kind of therapy that focuses on your life here and now. It emphasizes your strengths and accepting yourself the way you are. Gestalt therapy is also creative, helping you to work on your issues via different kinds of experiments. Gestalt therapy with me is lively, interactive and engaging. We will focus on options more than obstacles, the present more than the past, and strengths more than weaknesses.

"It would be nice to talk freely to somebody on your side, someone who can help you become who you want to be and not who they want you to be. You want somebody supportive and caring to help push you forward in your growth". You will never have the same therapy as someone else – your therapy centers around you – your needs, goals, and preferred pathways for achieving those goals. Gestalt therapy is more active, conversational, and effectual.

Ongoing training with Pacific Gestalt Institute

The interactive, experiential, present-moment nature of Gestalt Therapy has been my guiding framework since I first became a therapist. I've utilized and created my own Gestalt experiments that bring clients into a direct experience of healing in many varied contexts. My supervisor is Joan Rieger, Director the Gestalt Institute of the Rockies.

While working on increasing a person's awareness, freedom, and self-direction, I assist clients with learning how to focuse on being actively present in the moment while exploring past experiences as they may surface throughout the therapeutic process.

Gestalt is one of my favorite therapies, especially when dealing with role play.

Gestalt therapy is oriented around building awareness: of ourselves, of our thoughts & behaviors, of our choices, and of our physical systems that are constantly sending us invaluable data about our experiences. Through the gestalt process, clients learn to become more aware of how their own negative thought patterns and behaviors are blocking true self-awareness.