What to Expect: How it Works

Expect a relaxed atmosphere. The first session people are often confused where to start. I call
the first session a “spaghetti session.” Grab a noodle (one aspect of the problem) and it will start
to unwind itself. Theres no rush. Were here to get to know each other and sharing what is
foremost on your heart is very important.
Second session, I do what is called a genogram. A genogram is an overview of your family and
life history. I actually sketch it out on a piece of paper. This gives me your relational DNA. Helps
me to understand where you have come from and what makes up who you are. I am very
through in what I do. I tell folks that the genogram is four to six sessions in one. It helps me
understand ahead of time where to go. We look back in order to move forward.
Third session and beyond. Treatment (if you want to call it that) is all about emotional health.
Emotional health is, simply, having the emotional reserves to not fall apart during stressful
times. Relationally, it means to agree to disagree and stay in the relationship. To keep respect
going. There are many ways we gain emotional health, and those ways are explored in therapy.
I rarely give homework but will often give you a task to do between sessions. I’m famous for
asking, “how was your week?” The question is not just to fill time but to know if therapy is
working. How is therapy affecting your real life outside of my office?
Most people attend eight to twelve sessions. My level of experience enables me to get to root
problem quicker than most counselors and to see objective results sooner. I am very serious
about what I do. I expect to be able to move you down the therapy road and see progress. I
often joke that while I care about how you feel (most counselors), I care even more that you get
somewhere. If we both take the process seriously, we will see lasting change.
When it’s over. Therapy is over when you have significantly made improvement and have
gained the skills to keep improving. It’s important that you have changed, and now have the
self-knowledge to keep on changing. It’s also ok to come back. I have folks who come in once
or twice a year for a “tune up”. We all get stuck. I’m here to help you get unstuck. Also, I
already have all of our work on file. No need to rewrite things. Remember, I’ve been in Vero
beach since 2008. I’m not going anywhere.