My name is Dorothy: I have been a counselor /therapist for over 40 years. Twenty-Five years of my career has been in acute care hospitals. I dealt daily with, grief trauma, suicide and life changing illnesses. My critical thinking skills are finely tuned to help a patient or client process and take care of their family and selves at the most tragic times in their lives. Within these tragic situations, I have been able to assist and help clients find a path to go forward. In less stressful situations, I have used motivational interviewing to help a client within very chaotic situations not only move forward, but also to create goals for their lives and plans to achieve those goals.
I have worked with Military families and children . I have worked for 2 years in a school-based homeless program providing meals, counseling, home visits and resources for families facing many challenges. I have coordinated with schools, courts and child protective services to help families remain together and focused on what they need to do to keep their families together in the most difficult of times. I have provided couples counseling, family counseling and groups. I have taught parenting skills while learning the most useful lessons from the parents themselves.
Often my primary tool for family intervention is Systems theory. This theory is based on family and individual strengths. It basically theorizes that if a direct approach to change in a family doesn't work then another less obvious problem solving approach might work. Or that working on a positive change in another part of a client's world, might positively impact what can the desired change through a less direct route. This in turn may cause a ripple effect of other that impacts the entire family in a positive yet productive way. This method of intervention recognizes that families ultimately provide love and care as their roots of growth and nurture in a family.
I trust the family process to produce the best results for a family. I work hard to help you or your family in any compassionate way that I can while always keeping in focus the safety and well being of the family and the children. I always expect and realize that families are working even harder at these goals than I am. We are a team .
Sometimes only brief supportive interventions are helpful Other times, depending upon where the family is in its process, more intense interventions are appropriate.
My intent in any dynamic is to be of service to you and your family. I listen to the verbal, spiritual energy of the family and attempt to participate in the family "flow " and help to continue to guide it in a positive direction. Often these goals are very do-able. If I can't be helpful, I will certainly guide your family to someone who can be helpful. I look forward to working with you as much as you may need. Thank you.
Additional areas of focus: Stress, Anxiety, LGBT, Relationship issues, Family conflicts, Trauma and abuse, Intimacy-related issues, Eating disorders, Sleeping disorders, Anger management, Self esteem, Career difficulties, Bipolar disorder, Depression, Coping with life changes, Coaching, ADHD, Abandonment, Adoption and foster care, Aging and geriatric issues, Attachment issues, Autism and Asperger Syndrome, Blended family issues, Body image, Cancer, Chronic pain, illness, and disability, Codependency, Commitment issues, Communication problems, Control issues, Dissociation, Divorce and separation, Domestic violence, Drug and alcohol addiction, Family problems, Fertility issues, First responder issues, Forgiveness, Guilt and shame, Hoarding, Hospice and end-of-life counseling, Isolation / loneliness, Life purpose, Midlife crisis, Veteran and Armed Forces Issues, Multicultural concerns, Narcissism, Panic disorder and panic attacks, Post-traumatic stress, Prejudice and discrimination, Process addiction (porn, exercise, gambling), Self-harm, Self-love, Sexual assault and abuse, Sexuality, Social anxiety and phobia, Somatization, Traumatic brain injury, Women's issues, Young adult issues
Clinical approaches: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Attachment-Based Therapy, Client-Centered Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Mindfulness Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Solution-Focused Therapy, Trauma-Focused Therapy, Internal Family Systems
AZ LCSW 1315
CA LCSW 26417