We believe in creating individualized treatment plans in order to most effectively address each client's therapeutic needs. We work with people across the life span who are experiencing a variety of problems. In addition, our clinicians are trained in several forms of specialized treatments, including:

• Animal Assisted Therapy can provide additional healing through reducing feelings of depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem. The Delta Society has researched the impact of animals on the healing process and has found both cognitive and emotional benefits of therapy dogs. Therapy dogs can provide emotional and physical comfort for clients who are experiencing distress by relaxation through petting.
• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is an empirically supported treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder, chronic pain, phobias, and other emotional problems. EMDR is thought to work by improving the way in which the brain stores memories. During periods of extreme stress the brain does not store memories correctly, and these memories are often described as being "frozen in time" or "stored in isolation". This may lead to problematic thinking processes and behaviors. EMDR seems to help the brain "unlock" these memories and reduces their negative impact on the person's mood and behavior. EMDR also seems to work by changing the association that the brain and body has to somatic memories which can promote reduction in chronic pain symptoms. For more information about EMDR, please visit the EMDR International Association or ask your clinician if you have additional questions.
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) focuses on teaching new skills and coping strategies to clients through mindfulness, emotion regulation, improving relationships and interpersonal communication, and tolerating distress. DBT was originally created for Borderline Personality Disorder and has subsequently been utilized effectively with a variety of diagnoses and problems. Our philosophy is that we can all use additional skills to be more effective in our lives. These skills are especially useful during period of stabilization during recovery from traumatic experiences or health conditions.
• Art Therapy allows clients to access their own creativity in order to produce psychological healing. According to the American Art Therapy Association the therapeutic effect of "art media, the creative process, and the resulting artwork to explore their feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, manage behavior and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce anxiety, and increase self-esteem."
• Client-Centered Therapy/Child-Centered Play Therapy is a non-directive form of talk therapy that was developed by humanistic psychologist Carl Rogers, which focuses on an individual's ability to personally create and sustain meaningful life change given the appropriate psychological environment. Rogers defined the most important elements of therapy as being genuine, listening carefully, and a non-judgmental stance from the therapist. Play therapy, developed by Virginia Axline, follows these same principles of creating an emotionally supportive therapeutic atmosphere, but with clear boundaries that provide the child with psychological safety that helps foster the learning of emotional and behavioral self-regulation.