Adolescence and young adulthood are periods of significant change. Academic pressure, friendships, family dynamics, relationships, identity, social media, growing independence, and uncertainty about the future can become overwhelming. You may feel anxious, emotionally exhausted, misunderstood, disconnected, or caught somewhere between who you are and who you feel you’re supposed to be.

 

For young adults, that uncertainty can take on a different form. College, entering the workforce, changing relationships, living away from home, and making decisions about the future can create an enormous amount of pressure to have life figured out...sometimes before you’ve had the opportunity to discover what you actually want.

​

These years can also bring challenges with anxiety, OCD and intrusive thoughts, ADHD and executive functioning, perfectionism, school avoidance, low self-esteem, emotional dyregulation, social and peer pressures, relationship issues, and major life transitions. Sometimes it’s clear that something isn’t working. Other times, you may appear successful, social, and high-functioning while privately carrying far more than the people around you realize.

 

Therapy with me isn’t another place where you need to perform, say the “right” thing, or have everything figured out. Building trust comes first. I prioritize creating a genuine therapeutic relationship where you can feel comfortable being yourself, talk openly about what’s actually going on, and know that you won’t be judged for it.

 

From there, we can begin to understand what’s happening beneath the anxiety, avoidance, intense emotions, or patterns that may no longer be serving you. Our work might include managing anxiety and intrusive thoughts, identifying emotional triggers, tolerating uncertainty, strengthening executive functioning skills, navigating friendships and relationships, communicating more effectively, developing healthier boundaries, and building a stronger sense of confidence and identity.

 

Depending on your individual needs, I may incorporate DBT skills, mindfulness, Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), executive functioning strategies, and other evidence-based approaches. There is no one-size-fits-all version of therapy. Our work is tailored to who you are, what you’re experiencing, and what you hope to change.

 

For teens, I recognize that therapy also requires a thoughtful balance between growing independence and family support. When clinically appropriate, I like to collaborate with parents and caregivers while respecting the teen’s need for privacy, autonomy, and a therapeutic relationship that feels like their own. Helping families better understand what a teen is experiencing can support meaningful change outside of the therapy room, too.

 

For young adults, therapy can offer space to navigate increasing independence, changing relationships, college or career decisions, identity, boundaries, and the uncertainty that often comes with entering a new stage of life. You don’t need to know exactly who you are or where you’re going before you’re allowed to begin figuring it out.

 

The goal isn’t to have adolescence or young adulthood completely figured out. It’s to develop the self-understanding, confidence, and emotional tools to navigate these years while staying connected to yourself and what matters to you.