Psychotherapy
Depth-oriented therapy that seeks to understand, not simply manage.
Psychotherapy, as I practice it, is not primarily about symptom management or learning new skills—though both may occur. It’s about understanding: understanding what hurts, why it repeats, and what it asks of you. It’s about developing a richer, more honest relationship with yourself and building the capacity to navigate life’s complexity with greater freedom.
This kind of work takes time. It requires building a relationship of trust where difficult truths can emerge. It means exploring not just what you consciously know about yourself, but what lies beneath—the patterns and conflicts that operate outside awareness but shape your experience nonetheless.
What is Psychodynamic Psychotherapy?
Psychodynamic psychotherapy is an approach rooted in the understanding that much of mental life is unconscious. The patterns that cause us the most suffering—in relationships, at work, in our inner lives—often operate outside of awareness. We repeat what we don’t understand.
This tradition, beginning with Freud and developed by generations of clinicians and theorists since, holds that our earliest relationships shape our expectations, our characteristic defenses, and our ways of experiencing ourselves and others. These patterns, formed in childhood, tend to persist into adult life, influencing how we interpret situations, what we expect from others, and how we feel about ourselves.
Psychodynamic therapy aims to bring these patterns into awareness. Not just intellectually—insight alone rarely changes anyone—but through the lived experience of the therapeutic relationship, where old patterns inevitably emerge and can be examined, understood, and gradually revised.
This is not a quick fix. It’s a process of genuine psychological change: expanding awareness, metabolizing painful affect, developing more flexible defenses, and building the capacity to experience yourself and others more fully.
“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.”
— C.G. JungTheoretical Foundations
My work draws on several traditions within psychoanalytic thinking. These inform how I listen, what I attend to, and how I understand what happens between us.
Object Relations Theory
Object relations theory, developed by thinkers like Melanie Klein, W.R.D. Fairbairn, and Donald Winnicott, focuses on how early relationships become internalized as templates for all subsequent relating. We don’t simply have memories of our early caregivers—we take them in, and they become part of our psychological structure.
These internalized relationships (or “objects”) color how we experience ourselves and others. Therapy becomes a space to examine these internal objects and, through the relationship with the therapist, to develop new relational possibilities.
Kleinian & Bionian Thought
Melanie Klein and Wilfred Bion offer a particularly deep understanding of primitive mental states: the earliest anxieties, the defenses against psychic pain, and the processes by which we develop (or fail to develop) the capacity to think.
Bion’s concept of containment—the therapist’s capacity to receive, process, and return the patient’s unbearable experience in more digestible form—is central to how I understand the therapeutic relationship’s healing function.
Kernberg’s Structural Approach
Otto Kernberg’s work on personality organization provides a framework for understanding how the psyche is structured: how identity is consolidated, how internal conflicts are managed, and how reality testing functions. This is especially useful in work with personality disorders, where the very structure of the self is the focus of treatment.
Relational Psychoanalysis
The relational turn in psychoanalysis emphasizes that the therapeutic relationship is not merely a vehicle for insight but is itself transformative. What happens between patient and therapist—the moments of meeting, rupture, and repair—provides opportunities for new relational experiences that can gradually revise old patterns.
What to Expect in Treatment
Initial Consultation
We begin with a consultation to understand what brings you to therapy, your history, and what you’re hoping for. This is also an opportunity for you to assess whether I feel like the right fit. The therapeutic relationship is the foundation of the work; it matters that you feel comfortable enough to be honest.
Building the Frame
Psychotherapy requires consistency. We establish a regular meeting time, typically once or twice weekly, creating a reliable space in your life dedicated to inner exploration. This frame provides the containment necessary for deeper work to unfold.
The Unfolding Process
Sessions don’t follow a fixed agenda. You’re invited to say what’s on your mind—what happened this week, what you dreamed, what you noticed about your reactions, what you’re reluctant to say. I listen for patterns, for what’s unspoken, for the ways your history echoes in the present. Together, we make meaning.
Working Through
Insight is just the beginning. Real change requires working through—encountering the same patterns again and again, in different contexts, gradually loosening their grip. This takes time. You may feel frustrated by the pace, or surprised by how old feelings resurface. This is the work.
Termination
Ending therapy is itself an important part of treatment. We discuss termination together, giving space to process what the relationship has meant, to consolidate gains, and to acknowledge what remains to be done. A good ending is part of the healing.
How Therapy Creates Lasting Change
Awareness
Bringing unconscious patterns into consciousness is the first step. When you can see what you’re doing, you gain a choice you didn’t have before. Awareness doesn’t change everything, but nothing changes without it.
Metabolization
Many psychological symptoms represent unprocessed experience—affect that was too much to bear at the time, trauma that couldn’t be integrated, loss that couldn’t be mourned. Therapy provides a space where these experiences can finally be digested.
New Experience
The therapeutic relationship itself is corrective. When old patterns emerge in the relationship and are met differently than expected, something shifts. New relational experiences gradually revise old templates.
- Genuine interest in understanding your experience
- Attentive, non-judgmental listening
- Honest engagement with what I observe
- Willingness to be affected by you
- Consistent presence over time
- Commitment to my own ongoing development
The Therapeutic Relationship
The relationship between therapist and patient is not incidental to psychodynamic treatment—it’s where the work happens. How you relate to me, how I respond to you, what feelings arise between us: all of this provides invaluable information about your internal world and your patterns with others.
This doesn’t mean I’m a blank screen. I’m a real person, engaged with you, affected by our work together. The relationship is genuine, even as it also becomes a lens through which to understand your psychology. This is what makes the work both powerful and, at times, difficult. What happens between us matters.
You don’t need to perform, to be a “good patient,” or to have everything figured out. You just need to show up and try to be honest. That’s harder than it sounds, and it’s enough.
Is This Approach Right for You?
Psychodynamic therapy isn’t the only valid approach, and it isn’t right for everyone. It tends to work well for people who:
- Are curious about their inner life and open to self-reflection
- Want to understand their patterns, not just manage symptoms
- Are willing to commit to regular sessions over time
- Can tolerate some uncertainty and not knowing
- Are looking for lasting change, not quick fixes
- Sense that their difficulties are connected to their history and relationships
If you’re primarily interested in immediate symptom relief, specific skill-building, or very short-term intervention, a different approach might be more appropriate. I’m happy to discuss what might work best for your situation and to provide referrals when another approach would serve you better.
“The purpose of psychotherapy is not to enlighten us as to what we are, or to give us the means to change ourselves. Its purpose is rather to give the patient an experience that will alter the ways in which he assimilates events.”
— Roy SchaferPractical Information
Frequency
I typically recommend meeting weekly to start, with the option of increasing to twice weekly for deeper work. Less frequent sessions (every other week) are possible after a period of more intensive treatment, but are generally less effective for psychodynamic work.
Insurance
I am an out-of-network provider. I provide superbills for you to submit to your insurance for potential out-of-network reimbursement. Many PPO plans cover a significant portion of out-of-network therapy costs.
Cancellation Policy
Sessions cancelled or missed with less than 48 hours notice are charged the full session fee. This policy protects the consistency of your treatment and respects the time reserved for you.
Common Questions
How long does psychotherapy typically last?
The length of psychotherapy varies depending on your goals and needs. Some people benefit from short-term work (3-6 months) focused on specific issues, while depth-oriented psychotherapy often continues for a year or longer. We’ll discuss expectations during your initial consultation and regularly reassess as treatment progresses.
What’s the difference between psychodynamic therapy and other approaches?
Psychodynamic therapy focuses on understanding the underlying patterns, often rooted in early experiences, that shape current thoughts, feelings, and relationships. Unlike approaches that primarily target symptoms, psychodynamic work aims for deeper, lasting change by increasing self-understanding and addressing the root causes of distress.
Do you offer telehealth sessions?
Yes, I offer telehealth sessions for clients located in California and Oregon. Video sessions can be just as effective as in-person work for many people and provide flexibility for those with busy schedules or transportation challenges. I use a secure, HIPAA-compliant platform for all telehealth appointments.
How often will we meet for therapy?
Most clients begin with weekly sessions to establish momentum and build the therapeutic relationship. As treatment progresses and you develop greater stability, we may transition to less frequent sessions. The frequency is always tailored to your individual needs and circumstances.
What should I expect in the first few sessions?
The initial sessions focus on understanding your concerns, history, and goals for treatment. This is also a time for us to see if we’re a good fit—therapy works best when there’s a strong connection between therapist and client. I’ll ask questions about your background, but we’ll move at a pace that feels comfortable for you.
Begin the Conversation
Schedule a consultation to discuss your concerns and see whether working together makes sense.