Washington DC Individual Counseling for Gay and Straight Men and Women

Depressed? Anxious? Lonely? Struggling in your relationship or career? Difficulties with parents, siblings, or children? Feeling stuck?

I can help you develop the skills, strength, and resilience to deal with the challenges and curveballs of life.

If you’re considering individual therapy and looking for a therapist in DC, you’re probably having a tough time right now.  Maybe you’re sad or depressed, hoping that psychotherapy can help you move forward and feel better.

Maybe you’re tired of anxiety getting in the way of living and want some help from counseling.

Perhaps you can’t get past painful or traumatic experiences. Or maybe you don’t feel good about yourself, no matter how much praise others give you, and you’re hoping to develop positive self-esteem.

You may feel stuck in life, wondering why you can’t find or consistently follow a path that brings fulfillment in your career, friendships, or romantic relationships.

You may be struggling in your relationship and are looking for individual therapy because you need a place to think about and discuss your concerns.

Perhaps you seek individual counseling because you’re worried about your alcohol or substance use and need someone to help you think things through.

You may want to build a better relationship with your parents, siblings, or children. Perhaps you’re overwhelmed by the needs of aging parents or struggling to parent well while juggling all the other pressures of life.

You may simply be seeking to create a more satisfying and meaningful life.

Here’s what to expect from individual therapy or counseling sessions:

We’ll start our first session by talking about what is bringing you to therapy.

I will ask questions to get a sense of your life’s big picture and history.  We’ll think together about what factors may be contributing to the difficulties you are experiencing. You will also have time to ask me questions so we can get a good sense of whether we’re a good fit to move forward working together.

In future sessions, we will work together on strategies and skill-building to help you become more solid and resilient.  Talking about your life and experiences to make sense of your story, including traumatic events and difficult episodes, is part of healing.  We’ll look at how you may, at times, view yourself and others through a distorted lens and examine how you developed these lenses. When you can see yourself and those around you more accurately, living more fully and freely is easier.

Of course, we’ll also address how difficult and scary it can be to make a change and how you can deal with this discomfort and fear so that you can move forward.

I have a doctorate in clinical psychology; many years of advanced training to effectively work with individuals; and many years of experience helping individuals here in Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia.  

I’m not a therapist who simply listens or asks you how things make you feel. I give my perspective when I think it will be helpful, and strive to ask thoughtful questions that will help you challenge yourself.

In my Washington DC, practice, I help gay and straight individuals with a wide variety of challenges, including

• Alleviating depression
• Reducing anxiety
• Improving intimate relationships and family relationships
• Effectively managing job stress
• Resolving struggles with sexual orientation
• Achieving a pleasurable sex life
• Healing from grief, loss, and other trauma
• Ending substance use
• Improving self-esteem
• Coping with concerns about aging

Individual Therapy Frequently Asked Questions:

What is the goal of individual therapy?

Individual therapy can help you:

• Take charge of your life so that you live in a way that you respect and are less constrained by limiting beliefs and painful episodes in your history. 
• Challenge thoughts and beliefs that may make you miserable; and find ways to feel better.
• Develop strategies and skill-building to help you become more solid and resilient.  
• Understand your life story and why you are who you are. When you have a coherent narrative, you have far more power over your actions, responses, and life’s course.

What is the difference between individual and couples therapy?

In individual therapy, we focus on you. In couples therapy, we focus on both members of the couple and on the interplay between the two of you.

There is some overlap between individual counseling and couples counseling. Couples counseling should also pay attention to the dynamics and history of each individual.  But the focus of couples therapy is on helping each member of the couple to figure out what it means to do their best in the relationship, to decide if they want to do that work, and to take the ongoing steps necessary to create a strong relationship.

Feedback from my individual therapy clients

I’ve been seeing Michael once a week for about three years. I was referred to him by my primary doctor at a very dark time in my life. Feeling pretty hopeless about myself and my life, initially I was a little hesitant as to whether Michael could do much for me. Was I ever wrong! He is an amazing listener and remembers everything. That makes a huge difference in realizing you simply aren’t just a number to him but a real person with whom he takes great interest. With him, you’ll realize the possibilities and how to find them. Michael has a great sense of humor and is very personable. I can’t say enough about the difference the partnership with him has impacted my life.

— G.M.

My advice column and post for individuals

I have been providing individual counseling since 1995, and I encourage you to check out my blog posts to get a sense of my work as a psychologist.

This post talks about the core of how I work: The Best Move You Can Make

Here’s a sampling of other posts focused on issues we cover in individual therapy:

• Self-Soothing: An Invaluable Skill
• Do I Listen to Myself or to My Parents?
• When Someone You Love is Depressed
• Change is Possible
• Is Working from Home Taking Over Your Life?
• Building Resilience During the Pandemic Crisis
• Anxious About Coronavirus?

Additionally, I wrote a bi-weekly advice column in the Washington Blade for many years and still occasionally contribute. Here’s a sampling of columns that focus on individual therapy issues:

• Are 12-steps right for me?
• Stewing in misery
• Dog’s death sparks existential crisis for 53 year old
• Fight or flight?
• Alone on Christmas
• A hookup isn’t worth your life in COVID era

If you are looking for a licensed psychologist to help you feel better, be stronger, and/or improve your relationship, take the first step now by emailing or calling me at 202-234-3278 for a consultation. I have been helping gay and straight individuals and couples since 1995. During the pandemic, I offer virtual telehealth consultation and therapy via secure video.