How We Can Help

People often seek help when feelings or life situations have become hard to manage.  During difficult times,  even the first step of calling to make an appointment to speak with a therapist can help you feel more in control. 

               We can help you understand and heal feelings of depression, anxiety, and loss.  We can help with anger management.  You may be irritable and not understand why, or have trouble sleeping. You may be experiencing a sense of  loss of meaning.  Life stage issues may have arisen for you around changes in job, school, marriage, children, aging parents, or living situation.  You may be having problems with chemical dependency.  All these challenges, and more, are fertile ground for your spiritual and emotional growth.  We look forward to hearing from you, and to speaking with you about your needs and how we might help you with them.  And please scroll down for FAQs and helpful links. 

Our services include:

     *Individual psychotherapy for adolescents and adults

     *Couples and family therapy

     *Individual psychoanalysis

     *Bereavement work

     *Work with trauma and addiction issues

     *Parenting support

     *Group work and referrals

     *We are also happy to provide speakers for your school, synagogue, church, or other organization in New Jersey, New York City, and Westchester.

                There are few warmer or more welcoming psychotherapy spaces in New York City.  Please call to set up an appointment for a consultation, and join one of us by the fireplace in the adventure of discovery of the self in relationship.

"Your work has been a ministry to me."   A client, 2006.

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* What should I look for in a therapist?                                                                           You may find some of the principles highlighted on the following site to be useful:    www.GoodTherapy.org/what -is-good-therapy.html.    A good fit is important, and it may help you to schedule a consultation to see if therapy with one of us is right for you. 

* Is pastoral psychotherapy the same as religious counseling?                               On the one hand, it is unlikely that a pastoral psychotherapist or counselor would initiate prayer in a therapy session, or refer to Scripture as an authority for personal conduct, or recommend reflection on particular religious passages as homework.  On the other hand, patients wishing to pray or work through their relationship with the Holy, however it is defined, will find their issues respected and engaged.

* Where can I find more information about pastoral counseling?                         The American Association of Pastoral Counselors has an informative website at www.aapc.org/plan1.cfm.   Each therapist in the practice is a member of the American Association of Pastoral Counselors.  The AAPC's founding members received their training at the institute in New York City where each of the therapists trained. 

Each therapist is also grounded in his or her own religious tradition and its approach to pastoral counseling.  For instance, the Quaker among us is a member of Quakers in Pastoral Care and Counseling.  A  brief statement of their purpose can be found at www.qpcc.us/7128/25416.html.    The Friends Conference on Religion and Psychology is another meeting place of spirituality and psychology; information on this organization and its Jungian orientation can be found at http://fcrp.quaker.org/. 

* How does Jungian analysis relate to pastoral counseling?                                     Jungian analysis is friendly to the movement of the spirit in the psyche.  Many people with spiritual sensibilities find Jungian analysis to be a natural fit.  In the eclectic training each of the therapists in the practice received, Jungian as well as modern Freudian theories were studied.  Of the many websites related to Jung, you may find www.cgjungpage.org  a convenient place to start your search for further information.  And just for fun, you may enjoy hearing Jung speak about whether or not he believes in God at www.thezodiac.com/jungsound.htm.

*Where can I go to find out more about the conversation between spirituality and psychology?                                                                                                   There are many places.  William James's book Varieties of Religious Experience is a foundational classic in the field.  More recent books include Psychology & Religion:  Eight Points of View by Andrew R. Fuller and, for those interested in Buddhism, Into the Mountain Stream:  Psychotherapy and the Buddhist Experience, edited by Paul C. Cooper.  Books by Gerald May, many available from the Shalem Institute (http://store.shalem.org/index.php?cPath=22), are also great places to start.