Dr. Nelson specializes in treating anxiety and insomnia. She also enjoys seeing individuals who are adjusting to relationship or health changes. Individuals exploring career interests and transitions are also welcome. Our office has lots of natural light and has been set up to make your therapy session a comfortable, safe place to talk. You will find validation for your emotions and strategies to move toward your goals. Therapy focuses on your values and uses cognitive behavioral therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy strategies.
An 8-10 session treatment program that can help people who have difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or find their sleep is unrefreshing. CBT-I is a scientifically proven, highly effective way to end insomnia without relying on sleeping pills. This goal-directed therapy teaches you skills that can be used if insomnia recurs in the future. CBT-I has long-lasting benefits and most participants report improved sleep satisfaction.
ACT is a newer therapy also used to treat anxiety and depression, has also been found to be effective in treatment of anxiety, OCD, and depression. ACT uses acceptance and mindfulness strategies to teach patients not to overreact to or avoid unpleasant thoughts and feelings but rather move toward valued behavior.
Behavioral Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral therapy are short-term treatments that teach skills. What makes Cognitive Behavioral Therapy unique is that it focuses on the ways that a person’s cognitions (i.e., thoughts), emotions, and behaviors are connected and affect one another. Because emotions, thoughts, and behaviors are all linked, CBT allows for therapists to intervene at different points in the cycle.
Changes or goals might involve:
A way of acting: like going for a walk or greeting a classmate or coworker
A way of feeling: like helping a person to be less scared, less depressed, or less anxious;
A way of thinking: like learning to problem-solve or turn down the volume on self-defeating thoughts;
A way of dealing with physical or medical problems: like reducing back pain or helping a person stick to a doctor’s suggestions.
Cognitive behavioral therapists usually focus more on the current situation and its solution, rather than the past. They concentrate on a person’s views and beliefs about their life. The goal of CBT is to help people improve and gain more control over their lives by changing behaviors that don’t work well to ones that do.
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) is a specific CBT technique. ERP involves teaching the person to deliberately encounter/ exposure themselves to situations that trigger obsessive thoughts and fears (exposure), but resist carrying out the usual compulsive acts associated with the obsession (response prevention). This ERP technique leads clients to gradually learn to tolerate the discomfort and anxiety associated with not performing their compulsions. This results in decreased anxiety and an increased sense of mastery.