Existential Therapy

I practice existential therapy by focusing on areas of your life in which you can promote a greater sense of meaning and purpose, interpersonal connection, freedom, and fearlessness. I embrace the discomfort of not knowing the answer to all of life's questions, and strive to help my clients ease their anxiety about the great unknowns. Realizing that life's decisions can not always be put into boxes of "right" or "wrong" helps clients become more confident and assertive about making choices.

This is a framework I utilize to help explore experiences and increase meaning making (i.e., logotherapy).

I am at my core an existential therapist and continually layer other styles and modalities into how I practice. I have an underlying clinical framework of how people exist in the world which I tailor to each specific client.

I have been interested in the meaning of life since I first read Man's Search For Meaning 30 years ago. As a cancer patient, I have had a lot of time to consider my own purpose, and I think most people at some point (or many points) in their lives have moments where they contemplate what this all means. I love helping my clients explore the existential concerns of death, freedom, isolation, and meaning.

One of the greatest joys for me as a therapist is helping clients walk through the maze of finding and sustaining purpose and meaning in life. What are your needs and desires? How have you been experiencing this human life, and how do you want to experience it? What are the ways you want to show up for yourself, your loved ones, and the world? What does it all mean? Well, that of course depends on the day or mood, but I can support you in finding ways to navigate all of the big questions.

An existential approach to therapy emphasizes the importance of the meaning that each person makes in life and that the path that one takes can only be understood in the context of their unique life experience. This means that the questions, "Who am I?" and "What is the meaning of life" is a personal journey that, ultimately, only the individual can discover for themselves.

My first love was philosophy. I believe that we all struggle with the existential conundrums of the human condition, whether we know it or not, and one or more of them is behind all mental and emotional angst.

Meaning & purpose in life can help us survive the toughest situations. Unfortunately society often describes it as "finding meaning" so we keep hoping it will happen to us, or we are prescribed a purpose/meaning through religion, family, career, identity, etc. that may no longer be a good fit. Existential therapy helps us recognize that we have the power & responsibility to decide what is meaningful to us, create opportunities to nurture it, & re-evaluate it over the course of our life.

I help clients find meaning in their life in the face of adversity and uncertainty.

When clients first begin therapy, one of the questions that often comes up is what it means to work through emotions or traumas. From the perspective of Existential Therapy, we address the meaning that these experiences hold for you, which comes from our ability to build context foresight around them. If the past still hurts, or if the future holds too many mysteries, it is worth exploring the meaning that we derive from our life's story as a whole.

Existential-humanistic therapy seeks to create a therapeutic relationship and environment that fosters deepening awareness of oneself, including issues of meaning, choice, relationships, and working with one's potential and limitations. Rollo May, one of the founders of this approach, noted that the purpose of psychotherapy is to set people free.

I use existential therapy because it helps clients explore fundamental questions about life, such as meaning, purpose, freedom, and the challenges of existence. This approach encourages self-reflection and empowers clients to confront their fears, find their authentic selves, and live in alignment with their values. By examining life’s uncertainties, existential therapy fosters personal growth, emotional resilience, and a deeper sense of connection to oneself and the world.

Finding ways to think outside of the box and seeing the world around us in a new light, embracing the beautiful mystery of it all, can provide profound discoveries within ourselves and in sessions.

Working through how clients approach their lives philosophically can be a powerful aspect of therapy. Existential therapy allows clients to ask big questions that affect their mental health. I enjoy having these conversations with clients and seeing the change it can make in their lives.

The existential components of my therapeutic approach involve facilitating self-exploration of how each client understands the world around them and their place in it, allowing them to identify what it looks like to them to live meaningfully and intentionally.

Existential therapy is a philosophical approach that explores the human condition. It addresses universal issues like freedom, responsibility, mortality, and the pursuit of meaning. Rather than focusing on past experiences, it emphasizes the here-and-now and the individual's potential for self-determination, encouraging authenticity and personal growth.

It is not easy to discuss meaning making and the concepts of life and death with our social circle or friend group. I am here to provide the space for you to evaluate the human condition, your place within it and what it all means to you.

*"Why did you not become what only you could become?"* – Irvin Yalom. My existential approach offers a non-judgmental space to explore the uncertainty, tension, and paradox of being human. I help clients navigate life’s complexities, fostering self-agency, authenticity, and meaning. Through this work, I empower individuals to embrace their choices, confront challenges, and create a life that aligns with their deepest values in an increasingly chaotic world.

I believe that experiencing both joy and pain is what makes us human. My goal when sitting with you is not to "fix" you or to change the ways in which you show up as a human, but to embrace what makes you, "you". Themes like choice, freedom, purpose often come up in my sessions; I am interested in helping you figure out whether what you are doing is truly what you want to do with your life.