Serenity & Strength LLC provides online mental health services helping people throughout the state of Oregon. I currently provide time-limited (usually less than one year) individual psychotherapy alone or combined with medication management. I am not providing medication management without individual psychotherapy and generally not providing long-term medication management services or long-term psychotherapy services.
Anxiety
I specialize in cognitive-behavioral treatment of anxiety, obsessive-compulsive-related and trauma-related disorders, including:
- Panic Disorder
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder
- Social Anxiety Disorder
- Health Related Anxiety
- Dental and Medical Anxiety
- Driving and Flying Phobias
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Numerous studies demonstrate that cognitive-behavioral treatments (CBT) for anxiety disorders are as or more effective than medication treatments. CBT can also be effectively combined with medication treatments.
Depression
I welcome people with depression and people who are confronting challenging life circumstances. Again, I emphasize empirically supported individual psychotherapy and will combine treatment with medication when necessary. Depression tends to be recurrent, and I work with clients to develop strategies to prevent recurrence.
Stress
Stress is a term signifying something stressful in life. Stress can be related to jobs, family, health, relationships, etc. Usually, when people come to see me, they have a combination of life stressors. Stress can result in depression, anxiety, insomnia, trouble functioning, and worsening of body problems such as headaches, digestive issues, urinary frequency, tiredness, dizziness, etc. Many skills that work with anxiety and depression management also work well for stress-related problems. Finding ways to modify stressful situations and/or increase peace of mind about situations are helpful.
Trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Traumatic experiences can result in a variety of difficulties including anxiety, insomnia, irritability, depression, nightmares, flashbacks, intrusive memories, avoidance, and interpersonal difficulties. Traumatic experiences can also cause or worsen other difficulties with depression, anxiety, anger, addictions, and interpersonal problems. Traumatic experiences do not always result in PTSD. My preferred approach to treating the result of trauma is Cognitive Processing Therapy which can be done via tele-mental visit.
Personal Growth and Coaching
People who do not necessarily meet the criteria for a specific mental health disorder can benefit greatly from psychotherapy or personal coaching. We can work together to identify goals, strategies to meet goals, address barriers, identify helpful resources, and provide support. I have helped people with a variety of internal struggles, interpersonal difficulties, difficult decisions, life challenges, and behavioral difficulties.
Services I do not offer include:
- Treatment of patients younger than age 18
- Marital, couples, or family therapy
- Diagnosis or stimulant medication treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD/ADD). *
- Diagnosis or treatment of Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia
- Medication treatment for bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. **
- Disability evaluations and determinations
- Legal or court evaluations (i.e., expert witness, competency evaluations, parenting evaluations, mental injury opinions)
- Psychiatric medication management without psychotherapy
- Prescribing controlled substance medication treatment (e.g., sedatives, stimulants, z-drugs, opioids)
- Because of the limitations of online therapy, I cannot treat people with recurrent suicidal behavior, recent or frequent psychiatric hospitalizations, or needs for special services such as case management. People with more severe and acute mental health challenges who need urgent or specialized services should find local in-person mental health services.
- Substance use disorder treatment. I can see people who have current substance use problems with other mental health problems or concerns if there is a separate specific plan for addressing substance use.
*I do provide psychotherapy services to people with ADHD.
**I can provide psychotherapy for people with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, provided they have a long-term prescriber of medications and are currently stable.
If you are unsure, feel free to contact me.