Our counselors provide therapy in Irving, TX

Srividhya: I prefer and find the best benefit in DBT because, when combined with trauma-informed and feminist approaches, it helps address the person holistically in a person-centered way. I also use CBT, mindfulness, trauma-informed, feminist, CPT, and solution-focused techniques.

Jalisa: My go-to approach to therapy is CBT. You can’t change others, but you can change how you approach things.

Srividhya: I teach the following tools in individual therapy:

• Mindfulness skills - Mindfulness is a core component of DBT. This set of skills is all about focusing on being present in the moment.
• Distress tolerance skills - Distress tolerance skills allow a person to survive an immediate emotional crisis without making it worse (Linehan, 2014). They also help them accept the reality of the situation when they feel out of control because they cannot change the situation (Chapman et al., 2011).
• Emotional regulation skills - Emotion regulation is a dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) skill to help us understand the function of emotions, the action urge that accompanies each emotion, and whether to heed or oppose these urges.
• Interpersonal effectiveness skills - Interpersonal effectiveness skills are intended to help one become more aware of how their behavior affects relationships, and then make positive changes.

Jalisa: I teach tools that are DBT-related. Two things can be true at once.

Srividhya: I know when a client is making meaningful progress in individual therapy by bringing awareness to their growth in relevance to their treatment goals when they initially started out, along with their updated scores in the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 questionnaires.

Jalisa: I know a client is making meaningful progress when they show up to therapy consistently, are engaged, and tell me they are making progress.

Srividhya: Clients can supplement their time in individual therapy with a healthy support system and effective self-care strategy.

Jalisa: Clients can supplement their time in therapy by engaging in self-care/self-discovery & journaling.

Srividhya: To prepare for your first individual therapy session, you can reflect on your treatment needs and goals and expect to gather your background information in a structured intake process, including but not limited to family of origin history and any experiences with trauma, if applicable.

Jalisa: To prepare for your first therapy session, decide in your mind to be open to the process and honest with your therapist.