Find a Therapist

My caseload is frequently full. Please call or email for availability.

I use Emotion Focused Therapy, developed by Sue Johnson Ph.D., because it helps clients surface and express the more tender feelings that couples frequently have difficulty saying to each other. The emphasis in this method is on creating an atmosphere of emotional safety in the sessions in order to create secure emotional bonds. The approach assists couples in identify and changing repetitive negative patterns and in having difficult conversations without them spiraling into conflict and more hurt.

I see ONLY couples and I always start with and continue with both of you together. All sessions are 90 minutes long.

Special Populations: Couples dealing with affairs, couples wishing to integrate their faith perspectives (no matter what they are) into the therapy, and LGBTQ clients are welcome.

I believe in the power of couples therapy, and using the EFT model in particular. I understand how painful it can be to experience ongoing conflict or distance in our most important relationships. Sometimes we need a new way of looking at things—within us and between ourselves and our partner—to understand what's going on. With this new understanding, we can start to make the changes that will lead to a closer, more connected relationship.

Oftentimes, couples wait a long time before seeking help. It can be scary not knowing what to expect, and wondering if it will really help. By this time, they have experienced a lot of pain, and have established negative ways of interacting as a way to cope with the stress.

Don't wait! Help is available—just take the first step. Call or email me today and we can talk about how I can help.

It takes courage to reach out for help if your relationship is suffering. The benefits of engaging in couple therapy can be rich and rewarding. Emotionally Focused Therapy works from the understanding that the quality of our connection to our life partner is essential to our sense of well-being. I work with couples to help identify negative patterns that have developed and to build and deepen connection and understanding between partners.

Please call me for a 20-minute phone consultation at no charge to see if we might work well together.

I believe we are all created for connection in relationship, and that all relationships have the potential to bring great joy and great struggle. I believe in the importance of the therapeutic relationship between us, and that addressing the concerns that bring you to therapy can be a process that brings healing, transformation, and growth. My approach to counseling varies but is primarily informed by attachment and a relational psychodynamic perspective. EFT is a novel adaptation of attachment theory that helps restore the bonds of connection in our most important relationship, the one we share with our significant other. My hope is to help each and every couple I meet with to experience a more fulfilling relationship based upon strengthening the bond between them.

Thanks.

I work together with my wife, Karin Matthews, as a co-therapy team to help couples bring more connection and life to their relationships.

Karin and I are two very different people: female/male, extrovert/introvert, expressive/reserved, with different careers and cultural backgrounds. Working together as a team allows us to offer you the benefit of our combined backgrounds, personalities, and perspectives. We find that our own diversity meshes well with the diversity within the couples that we see and helps us make sense of what both partners of a couple are experiencing.

If you’re having a hard time with conflict, or are feeling more distant and disconnected than you’d like, we can work with you to help you understand how you’ve come to be stuck where you are and to find new ways to navigate your differences with compassion and respect for yourselves and each other.

I work in partnership with people to identify ways problems have affected their lives—and strategize ways to help them regain control over their lives. I work collaboratively examining challenges/problems, particularly looking to uncover life experiences that contradict problems—contradictions that may provide ways for people to create preferred ways to live with those challenges.

Perhaps the best statement that reflects my philosophy of practice is from Michael White: "The problem is the problem; you are not the problem."

Counseling can help you get unstuck, set goals, reduce anxiety and depression, take action to feel better, and help you have more control of your life. With a compassionate and supportive approach, I help people find real solutions to important issues in life, work, and relationships. I help people identify negative emotions and limiting beliefs and replace them with healthy coping skills and positive strategies to change their lives.

Through integrating current research in neurobiology and attachment, I help couples acknowledge, respect, and understand each other better. I help couples break negative patterns that undermine their relationships and find real tools for improving their communication and connection. Education and understanding of each partner's emotional regulation is an important part of the process. Conflict is a normal part of couple communication. Every couple has both a positive and negative communication cycle. Conflict intimacy is learned and an important part of growing together. When couples understand how their emotions, needs, and behaviors affect each other in the communication cycle, they learn how to maintain secure attachment and foster positive relationships.

Every person, couple, and family struggles from time to time. Sometimes it is hard to get through these rough patches alone. Having a compassionate and supportive individual attending to your concerns provides a safe environment to create positive change. As a marriage and family therapist who uses emotionally focused therapy, I am curious about interactions that are keeping you stuck in the uncomfortable and enthusiastic about conversations that begin to create understanding and new patterns of connection.

I focus on many aspects of being human including relationship issues, depression, anxiety, grief/loss, life events, transitions and specialize in sexual health and intimacy.

I also utilize narrative therapy, trauma-focused therapy, tantric and mindfulness practices, and motivational interviewing. I am a Certified Integrated Intimacy Professional (CIIP).

You and your partner are struggling right now, and maybe have been for a long time. Life's transitions such as retirement, marriage, or birth of a new child can make staying connected with your partner quite difficult at times. Or other challenges in your relationship can leave you with difficulty trusting and feeling alone or like roommates. You both are tired of being stressed, tired of all the yelling, tired of being tired. Going to therapy can be scary, but you won't be alone. With me, you and your partner will cry, laugh, and work hard together!

My practice is in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle at Meaningful Journey Counseling, and I focus on couples counseling and relationship issues for individuals. I hold a Master’s degree and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. My training in EFT and interpersonal process therapies influences my approach to working with both couples and individuals in a present-focused and validating manner.

Please contact me for a complimentary 15–20 minute phone consultation to see if we'd be a good fit.

You know the best thing you can give to your children is a healthy marriage, and yet getting along with your partner is one of the hardest things to do? I help couples feel close and connected in their relationship, so it's a win-win situation for everyone.

Just because you've been fighting like clockwork or living like roommates does not mean it has to stay that way. If you only have one shot at life, make it count.

Let's do this together. Give me a call today.

My therapy practice is 100% online, serving all of Washington state. My hours are 6am–2pm Monday–Thursday.

I work with couples and individuals to develop insight and vision to live life to its fullest by helping them gain an understanding of their negative patterns and develop new healthy relational styles. I chose to be an emotion focused therapist because I found this process to have the most transformative impact on relationships and improving individual wellbeing.

I also have a special focus working with individuals and their loved ones to address the social, relational, and emotional aspects of living with chronic pain and other chronic issues.

Feel free to contact me and see how I can help!

Each of us is profoundly influenced by our love relationships and how our families impacted us. These relationships shape how we respond to the complexities and challenges of life. Negotiating difficulties can sometimes leave us feeling lonely, frustrated, overwhelmed, and in conflict with loved ones. I work with individuals, couples, and families to create and strengthen secure bonds in your significant relationships. Strong and secure relationships increase confidence, emotional security, and emotional well-being in the face of life's stressors.

My practice focus includes relational difficulties, depression, anxiety, grief/loss, PTSD, chronic illness, and more. In addition, I enjoy working with individuals, couples, and families who are impacted by ASD. Having completed advanced training in Emotionally Focused Therapy, I utilize EFT and an attachment framework to support my clients. I am currently pursuing ICEEFT certification as an EFT therapist.