Women’s Issues

As women, we are frequently taught to put others’ needs ahead of our own.  It is important to learn to understand and communicate your needs and wants clearly and assertively. Learning to release yourself from unhealthy guilt is also imperative. We will help you develop stronger self-care habits and teach you how to balance your self-care with your caring for others. We also provide support for post-partum depression, empty nest syndrome and menopausal adjustment.

Everyone can benefit from a “self-esteem tune-up.”  How do you talk to yourself – what words do you use. Are you unusually hard on yourself? Are you aware of your self-talk? Is your self-talk hurting or helping you? Messages you learned growing up also affect how you view yourself today.  Are you making choices for yourself that help build your self-esteem or tear it down?

There is a fine line between caring and caring too much. When does loving someone hurt you? Are you able to say no when needed? Do you know what you think, feel, need and want? Can you express your needs freely to others? Are you able to set clear boundaries for yourself? Is NO a permissible word for you or are you a YES person? We help you figure out the answers to these questions.

If left unattended, loss and grief can have serious lingering effects on many aspects of your life. Unresolved grief can weigh you down physically, spiritually, mentally and occupationally. While nothing can take away the loss you have experienced, receiving support and guidance through the grieving process can help soothe your pain and heal your hurt so you may enjoy your life again.

We are the home of Deborah’s distinctive 12-Week Women’s Self-Improvement Group. Group sessions provide learning and personal growth opportunities and a safe way to connect more deeply with other like-minded women. Group counseling provides a unique format for growth that cannot be duplicated in individual therapy. Through both psychoeducational and experiential techniques clients develop new thoughts, feelings and behaviors.

A common complaint in many relationships is poor communication. We focus on teaching non-defensive communication to help re-establish a sense of safety and connection in your relationships. It is hard to get past roadblocks in your relationships if you can’t communicate efficiently with each other. Defensiveness is a significant barrier to open and helpful communication. Defensiveness is a learned behavior. We can help you move through defensiveness to healing.

You might be feeling unmotivated with low energy. You might be feeling tired more often than not and have trouble focusing or concentrating. These feelings might be symptoms of depression. Isolating or significant changes in behaviors are also symptoms. The earlier you attend to yourself the better.  Life can bring many stressors that, over time, can wear you down.

Divorce, whether wanted or not, is a stressful and anxious time. Managing the many feelings that often arise is a challenge. We help you learn to deal with your soon to be ex-spouse and get you through a difficult process. It is important that you have productive support to help you navigate this time of change and adjustment.

Adult Children of Alcoholics and other addictions often have common struggles as an adult. Do you tend to have all-or-nothing thinking? Are you very loyal even at times when you shouldn’t be? Do you have issues with control and trust? ACOA tend to be either over responsible or under responsible. With a little attention paid to the origins of these struggles, you can break free.

Sugar is a highly addictive substance and issues with overeating, compulsive or binge eating are significant struggles for many. We have a program that  will help you learn more about the role your emotions play in your relationship to food and addresses this issue from a holistic perspective.  Changing your relationship with emotions and food for the long run is more important than short-term fixes.

None of us is immune to stress. A recent survey found 18.1 percent of those who responded suffer from anxiety. Learning how to manage your stress more effectively will help prevent long-term issues. Anxiety can be debilitating and lead to a number of diseases. Getting help with how to redirect your thoughts and learn how to self-soothe is critical to reducing the negative effects of stress and anxiety.

We work with adults who have been adopted. Deborah is one of a few counselors who specialize in this therapy. Do you have trust issues or fears of abandonment? We see these common problems in those who have been adopted. Many have never had a safe place to talk about these feelings. You have a right to a full and complete life. Through various methods, we work through residual feelings that may be interfering with your life.

We provide workshops and Deborah is available as a guest speaker and presenter on a variety of topics. Her energetic, sincere and motivating style is transparent in her presentations. Her interactive approach provides a creative learning experience.