Lindsey Van De Laarschot Therapy

What is Psychotherapy?

Instead of giving you a direct quote of what psychotherapy is and how it works, I would rather explain our potential work together in a way that is honest and comes from the heart. Psychotherapy essentially is the work between a clinician and a client, one where a rapport is built between them through time, trust, and open dialogue. Creating a shared space of vulnerability and acceptance can take time to develop, but can be achieved through consistency, active listening, and holding a non-judgmental space for the client to fully disclose their truth. 

During our time together you can expect to engage in talk-therapy. Talk-therapy will be a mixture of direct and non-direct communication between you and me. You will not be expected to share more than you wish to and you have full control over the content you would like to talk about and further explore. While you might have things you would like to eventually unpack, especially those that are triggers from a traumatic past, you will be in charge of when or if you wish to share those feelings and memories with me. You will never be pressured to go into deeper detail as I will respect your boundaries of what you wish to share. 

I like to combine techniques from different styles of therapy, as I do not believe one fits all. I also feel that each type of therapeutic approach has its own strengths that can be beneficial depending on the client. With that being said, I might engage in the following techniques during our time together: journaling, mindfulness, role play, and family tree mapping. I might acknowledge your body language, facial expressions, and tone during our sessions.

As our work blossoms and you feel more comfortable with me, I might try a more direct approach with you to aid in your journey of growth; this could look like me asking more direct questions about the topics we have regularly been exploring. This will not be done maliciously, but instead as a way to deepen your lens around the problem in order to continue progressing. I do tend to lean towards a person-centered approach; this means that I believe you as the client have the capability to decide for yourself what you would like to explore in therapy and know best how you would like to introduce those topics, feelings, and emotions into our sessions together. This means I will not direct you, but instead be a supportive environment for you through this journey together.