I offer individual and family therapy for children, adolescents and adults. I treat childhood trauma, single incident and complex PTSD, attachment disruptions, depression and anxiety. To request further information or schedule an appointment, please contact me at Bertha@ahealingplaceincolumbia.com or go to www.ahealingplaceincolumbia.com
Mayland State Board of Social Work Examiners LCSW-C License number: 13766
Florida Telehealth Provider number: TPSW1082 Florida Telehealth • Pages (flhealthsource.gov)
Question: Can I call you for a phone consultation to see if you would be a good fit for the kind of treatment that I'm looking for?
Absolutely! I offer free 15 minute initial consultations. I want you to get the therapy and therapist that is the best match for you. I'm happy to talk with you about my treatment modalities and style. I will be honest about what I can and cannot offer.
Question: What does a first session look like?
Typically, we'll talk a little about your reasons for seeking treatment and I will give information on how we can work together to achieve your treatment goals. There will be opportunity to ask any questions you may have about the therapeutic process. You will be invited to talk about events/experiences that have contributed to your current symptoms, but you will not need to go into detail about traumatic experiences you may have had until you feel ready and comfortable doing so. The goal is for you to be able to stay within your window of tolerance throughout treatment. We will go at a pace that feels comfortable for you. To learn more about the window of tolerance, please see the Resources page.
Question: What is EMDR?
EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing) is a science based treatment approach that helps clear unresolved feelings, negative beliefs about self, body memory and traumatic memories. It can be used with both children and adults. It is an eight-phase treatment based on the Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model.
EMDR treatment looks different than regular talk therapy. In EMDR, the therapist acts as a facilitator to provide a safe space for the client's brain's natural capacity to work at filing away disturbing memories and allow for adaptive information to emerge.
These are the eight phases:
Phase one: We explore how current symptoms are impacting your daily life and if/how these symptoms may be connected to experiences in the past.
Phase two: We assess what feels doable/tolerable for you in terms of accessing past painful experiences and, if needed, practice self-soothing strategies that you can use during the session and in your daily life. As mentioned above, the goal, both in EMDR and during treatment in general, is for you to be able to stay within your window of tolerance during treatment.
Phase three: We determine which "target memory" to use during phase four. Usually this means I'll ask you to think about a specific memory that still feels disturbing to you now, what feelings, negative beliefs (i.e: I'm not good enough, I'm unworthy) and body sensations are connected to it, and how disturbing it is on a scale from 0-10. We also identify a positive belief about yourself that you'd like to connect to the target memory (i.e: I have choices, I'm okay the way I am, I'm lovable).
Phase four: This is what people usually think of as EMDR; in his stage we reprocess the disturbing memory using bilateral stimulation (BLS) (activating both sides of the brain). BLS can be done with eye movements, holding gently vibrating tappers, tones, drumming or tapping. Once the level of disturbance connected to the target memory has gone down to a 0, we go to
Phase five: Installation of positive belief about self in the target memory using BLS.
Phase six: Our bodies hold memories too, so in this phase I will ask you to do a body scan to see if there are any disturbing body sensations that come up when thinking about the target memory.
Phase seven: Closure. To ensure you feel ready to go about your day after the session, we take some time for transition at the end of the session by using self-soothing strategies.
Phase eight: Reevaluation. At the beginning of the following session, we check in to see if you noticed any changes in your daily life since the previous session.
Question: What is IFS?
IFS (Internal Family Systems) is a non-pathologizing, gentle model for treatment and for understanding human behavior in general. The IFS model identifies that all people have a core self as well as different internal parts that work together or that are in conflict with each other. Each part intends to protect in some way or carries an old wound. In treatment we identify the positive intentions and/or needs of parts and unburden parts from carrying old wounds or from having to work so hard.
If you wish to find out more about treatment methods and tools that inform my practice, please visit the Resources page for a variety of videos and articles.
Question: Do you take insurance?
I am not paneled with insurance companies, but please check with your insurance provider if they have Out of Network benefits. If so, your insurance company will reimburse you for a portion of the cost of therapy.
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