Andrea’s primary speciality lies in chemical dependency counseling and she has a passion for helping people find recovery from their addiction. Andrea has extensive experience in working with individuals, families and couples that have experienced the difficulties of loving someone with an addiction. She is well versed in helping families to communicate, resolve conflicts, forgive and rebuild trust in their relationships. As two of the most prominent mental health disorders, Andrea understands the emotional pain that can come from experiencing the fear of anxiety and the sadness of depression. Andrea believes that these symptoms can be dealt with and overcome through several methods and techniques. She utilizes cognitive behavioral therapy in order to examine the often irrational/illogical thoughts that come along with these issues and replace those thoughts with positive truths and affirmations. She also believes that living a holistically healthy life through good nutrition and exercise can effectively minimize symptoms. “Taking care of yourself is the first priority”. Andrea also believes that many of the issues that we experience as adults can derive from unresolved issues that developed from the family of origin. Andrea uses genograms (fancy family trees) to facilitate exploring, gaining insight and resolving these issues, allowing these lessons to strengthen the person from the inside out. Lastly, Andrea believes in using emotionally focused therapy as a tool for examining intra and interpersonal issues. “As we become more aware of ourselves and our feelings, we form a more intimate relationship with ourselves and the people that we love. Learning to allow ourselves to experience emotions, whether positive or negative, helps facilitate the healing process”. Andrea especially likes to use EFT to help couples reconnect with one another in order to improve their relationship.
