Emotionally Focused Therapy
EFT was created in the 80’s as a structured approach to couples therapy. Based on attachment science, EFT became the leading intervention for distressed couples looking to deepen their bond. Since its’ formation, EFT has expanded to include individual and family therapy.
All of my work is grounded in attachment theory.
Attachment theory, pioneered by Bowlby and Ainsworth, delves into the impact of early relationships on emotional well-being. Rooted in the understanding that humans are wired for connection, it explores how early interactions shape emotional regulation and relationship patterns.
As a therapist, I incorporate attachment principles to support clients in understanding their attachment styles and explore fresh approaches to navigate emotional challenges.
While we may not have the ability to select the attachment style our early caregivers provided, we have the power to nurture what is termed an 'earned secure' connection. Employing evidence-based approaches, I can guide you through the process of cultivating this resilient attachment style through individual or couples therapy.
Discover Your Attachment Style
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A secure attachment style characterizes individuals who feel comfortable with both intimacy and independence in relationships. Formed through consistent and responsive caregiving during early development, individuals with a secure attachment style tend to trust others, express their needs openly, and feel secure in seeking support from attachment figures. This style fosters a sense of emotional security, self-worth, and confidence in navigating relationships. As a therapist, I specialize in recognizing and reinforcing secure attachment patterns, supporting individuals in building and maintaining healthy connections, and promoting overall emotional well-being.
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An anxious attachment style reflects a pattern of interpersonal relationships characterized by heightened sensitivity to perceived threats of abandonment or rejection. Individuals with an anxious attachment style often experience intense emotions and worry about the availability and responsiveness of their attachment figures. This heightened need for reassurance and fear of abandonment can lead to a strong desire for closeness and intimacy, but it may also manifest as clinginess, preoccupation with relationships, and difficulty trusting others. As a therapist, I work collaboratively with individuals exhibiting an anxious attachment style to explore and understand these patterns, fostering self-awareness and promoting healthier ways of relating in relationships.
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An avoidant attachment style, grounded in attachment theory, characterizes individuals who exhibit a tendency to downplay the importance of close emotional connections and may resist intimacy in relationships. Those with an avoidant attachment style often prioritize independence and self-sufficiency, suppressing the need for emotional closeness. This can result in a reluctance to fully engage in or commit to relationships, along with a tendency to withdraw emotionally when feeling overwhelmed. As a therapist, my approach involves working collaboratively with individuals displaying an avoidant attachment style to explore the underlying reasons for emotional distancing, promote self-awareness, and facilitate the development of more secure and fulfilling connections in relationships.
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A disorganized attachment style is characterized by a blend of contradictory behaviors and responses in relationships. Individuals with a disorganized attachment style may exhibit both a desire for closeness and an avoidance of intimacy, leading to unpredictable and often confusing patterns of interaction. This attachment style is often associated with early experiences of trauma or inconsistent caregiving, creating internal conflicts in how individuals approach relationships. As a therapist, I specialize in understanding and addressing disorganized attachment, guiding individuals towards resolving inner conflicts, enhancing self-regulation, and fostering healthier patterns of connection in their relationships.
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An earned secure attachment style, also known as earned security, refers to a positive shift in attachment patterns that individuals can develop through therapeutic interventions and personal growth. It typically emerges when individuals with insecure attachment histories engage in self-reflection, healing, and therapeutic work to transform their relational dynamics. This earned secure attachment style reflects a newfound sense of security, improved self-regulation, and the ability to establish and maintain healthy relationships. As a therapist, I specialize in guiding individuals toward earning a secure attachment, assisting them in understanding and modifying their attachment patterns to promote greater emotional well-being and fulfillment in their interpersonal connections.
Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFCT)
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) is a well-established, structured approach to couple therapy, rooted in attachment science and developed in the 1980s. Typically consisting of 8-20 sessions, EFT integrates a humanistic, experiential approach to reshape emotional experiences with a systemic, structural approach to reshape interactions. Extensive research supports the effectiveness of EFT, showing significant treatment effects and enduring results. This approach has been successfully applied to diverse couples in various settings, including private practices, university training centers, and hospital clinics. EFT has shown promise in helping couples dealing with depression, trauma-related anxiety, medical illness, and forgiveness issues. Its adaptability to different cultural groups and educational levels has made it a widely utilized therapy across continents, including North and South America, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
Goals
To expand and re-organize key emotional responses and, in the process, the organization of the dance with loved ones.
To create a positive shift in partners interactional messages and patterns.
To foster the creation of a secure bond between partners.
Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy (EICT)
Emotion-Focused Individual Therapy (EFIT) is a therapeutic approach grounded in attachment science, similar to its counterparts, Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy (EFCT) and Emotionally Focused Family Therapy (EFFT). EFIT provides strategies to understand and transform one's inner experiences, as well as interventions aimed at reshaping how individuals engage with others, drawing from their past experiences. Central to EFIT is the recognition of the profound influence of emotions in shaping our inner worlds, driving our motivations, and influencing our relationships. Emotions are seen as the linchpin that connects and organizes our core experiences and interactions, making them a focal point across all aspects of treatment.
Goals
To offer corrective experiences that positively impact models of self and other and shape stable, lasting change.
To offer transformative moments where vulnerability is encountered with balance and difficult moments befriended.
To enable clients to move into the openness, responsiveness and full engagement that characterises secure attachment with others.
To enable clients to shape a coherent sense of a competent self that can deal with existential life issues and become a fully alive human being.
For all of us, the person we love most in the world, the one who can send us soaring joyfully into space, is also the person who can send us crashing back to earth. All it takes is a slight turning away of the head or a flip, careless remark. There is no closeness without this sensitivity. If our connection with our mate is safe and strong, we can deal with these moments of sensitivity. Indeed, we can use them to bring our partner even closer. But when we don’t feel safe and connected, these moments are like a spark in a tinder forest. They set fire to the whole relationship.
― Dr. Sue Johnson, Hold Me Tight: Your Guide to the Most Successful Approach to Building Loving Relationships