Our counselors provide therapy in Cherry Hill, NJ

Lauren: I am a big believer in CBT because I believe that when people are doing something to make a change, it helps them feel in control and therefore start feeling better.

Laura: My go-to approach for helping people in individual therapy is about listening to what people need. I find the best benefit in normalizing their experiences and difficulties because, very often, people feel alone and hopeless. Understanding that even the awful parts of life are still normal parts of the human experience allows them to start healing.

Nicole: My go-to approach in helping people in both online and in-person therapy has a primary focus on listening and developing problem solutions together. I do this with my mix of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), person-centered therapy, mindfulness, and psychoeducation approaches. I enjoy practicing these elements in sessions with my clients because it helps with processing and gaining perspective in order to identify what needs to change and the barriers that have been in place that we aren’t okay with holding anymore compared with the benefits.

Lauren: I teach the following tools in individual therapy: reframing, empathy, self-care, saying “no”, not being a people pleaser, believing in oneself.

Laura: I teach the following tools in individual therapy: emotional regulation (ways to change how you are feeling), distress tolerance (ways to coexist with unchangeable factors), coping/calming skills (ways to remove stress, anxiety, and motor tension), mindfulness (ways to connect with peacefulness and relaxation), interpersonal effectiveness (ways to interact and engage with others comfortably), communication skills (ways to express yourself), conflict resolution (ways to resolve problems and fights), intrapersonal growth (ways to grow healthy self-awareness, self-esteem, and self-efficacy).

Nicole: I teach typically the same in either platform of online or in-person. Some standard tools that are applicable regardless of what our focus is going to be can be:

• Effective communication
• Identifying and utilizing coping skills
• Identifying barriers
• Developing boundaries

Lauren: I know a client is making meaningful progress in individual therapy when they feel better. When they can hear the voice of the clinician in their head when making better decisions. When they can confidently say “I will get through this.”

Laura: I know a client is making meaningful progress in individual therapy when their story of what happened is the same, but their reaction or understanding is different. Seeing the shift in perspective demonstrates such growth.

Nicole: When clients change their frequency in sessions, we know we are giving more time to practice skills outside of session, we may be moving more towards needing less support, and are in maintenance with the tools learned from our sessions where we just don’t need to talk as often.

Lauren: Clients can supplement their time in individual therapy with journaling, reframing, and using other coping skills. Also, doing the agreed-upon homework will help the client move toward wellness.

Laura: Clients can supplement their time in individual therapy by practicing their coping skills for only a couple of minutes a day; 2-3 minutes a day is better than an hour a week. Clients can also practice self-care as much as possible.

Nicole: Give enough time and space outside of therapy to think about what we talk about in therapy. A lot of times, we talk about it, but we aren’t seeing the action steps of implementing outside of sessions, so we stay stagnant. Make the change, do the thing, and that would be honoring the experience and investment in yourself the most.

Lauren: To prepare for your first individual therapy session, you can open your mind to thinking of how you can see the problem differently and be prepared to have a highly skilled “sister friend”-like experience.

Laura: To prepare for your first individual session, you can tell yourself a few important things. First, you are not alone. Second, there will be times when it is hard or uncomfortable. And third, the hardest part is getting started; once started, it'll get more comfortable.

Nicole: To prepare for your first online therapy session, pick a cozy, private place to have a session, make sure you have your charging accessories as needed, and review our consent forms. Everything is in those consent forms with what to expect and anticipate from the process, but we usually don’t give enough time for a thorough read, and this is my suggestion of doing just that. I promise it is beneficial and worth your time.