Everyone comes to therapy with a history of things that they have done well and things that they have not done so well. We’ll work towards concrete goals by looking for solutions through your strengths and through the ways you’ve successfully handled past problems. The idea is to use resources that you already have that may be dormant or be going quietly unnoticed.
Framework and assumptions:
- Change is constant and an inevitable part of life
- Clients are the experts and clients determine therapy goals
- Clients have resources and strengths to solve problems
- Present and future focus – we only address the past as needed
- Emphasis is on the possible and the changeable
- Treatment is short term
- Clients who come for therapy want change in their lives
As a practical matter, this means that if you come to see me because you’re coming off of a bad break up and feeling sad and worried about your future, that’s what we’ll be addressing. If in addition you have a trauma history or a substance abuse history, we won’t be addressing those except as they relate to the current problem and then only with your permission.
