Thoughtful clinical care.
Room for the whole person.
Grounded in person centered therapy to help lead to your flourishing.
Faith and psychology in conversation
In my practice, I utilize and am informed by many different therapeutic modalities. These are evidence-based approaches that are used to treat individuals, couples, and families. I use the lens of these approaches and modalities and the philosophical understanding of the human person from a Catholic anthropology to conceptualize what a client is dealing with and to see how best to help them.
I welcome clients of all faiths and backgrounds, including those with no religious beliefs. If you prefer not to include prayer, Catholic teaching, or spirituality, our work will remain grounded in psychological care and respect for your values. Personal beliefs will not be pressed upon you.
Different approaches, one person at the center
I draw on a range of therapeutic approaches rather than expecting every client to fit one method. These brief descriptions introduce the lenses that may inform our work.
The Gottman Method
A research-based approach to couples therapy built on the Sound Relationship House Theory. It defines a healthy relationship through nine core components—including building love maps, turning toward bids for connection, and managing conflict. Its primary goals are to disarm conflicting verbal communication, eliminate destructive behaviors (the "Four Horsemen"), and increase intimacy, respect, and affection. José has completed Levels 1 and 2 of Gottman Method Training and uses Gottman Method Couples Therapy in their therapy work.
Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)
A structured, short-term approach to psychotherapy that integrates humanistic-experiential and systems theories with adult attachment science. According to Sue Johnson, adult love is a hardwired attachment bond. EFT defines distress as the result of a threat to this bond, and it works by helping partners map out negative interactional cycles, access underlying attachment vulnerabilities, and construct a secure emotional connection. José has completed an Externship in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and utilizes Emotionally Focused Therapy in his work.
Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy (EFIT)
An adaptation of EFT principles explicitly designed for individual therapy. EFIT focuses on helping individuals process internal emotional states and modify their internal working models of self and others. The founder, Sue Johnson defined its aim as transforming restrictive emotional patterns, resolving trauma, and fostering a coherent, secure sense of self so the individual can "flourish in life and in love."
Attachment Styles
While "attachment style" is a psychological framework rather than a singular modality, attachment-based therapy is rooted in Bowlby’s definition of attachment as an evolutionary, hardwired survival mechanism. It defines human dysfunction through the lens of early relational disruptions and identifies four primary styles (Secure, Anxious, Avoidant, and Fearful-Avoidant/Disorganized). The therapy explicitly aims to use the therapeutic alliance as a safe base to process relational trauma and build earned security.
Cognitive Behavior Therapy
A collaborative, active, and structured form of psychotherapy focused on the interplay between cognitions, emotions, and behaviors. Beck defined CBT around the premise that psychological distress is largely maintained by cognitive distortions (biased ways of thinking) and maladaptive behaviors. By identifying, challenging, and reframing these automatic thoughts, clients alter their emotional responses and behavioral habits.
Relationship Enhancement Therapy (RE)
A pioneering psychoeducational and behavioral-humanistic therapy model created in the late 1960s. RE defines therapy as an educational skill-training process. It asserts that if a family or couple is systematically taught specific skills—such as the Expresser mode, Empathic responder mode, and conflict negotiation—they can solve their own interpersonal problems without relying on a professional.
Internal Family Systems (IFS)
An integrative approach that blends systems thinking with the view that the human psyche is naturally sub-divided into multiple "parts" (or sub-personalities), led by an undamaged core Self. The therapy safely differentiates these parts to let the compassionate core Self heal and integrate them.
Bowen Family Systems Therapy
A multigenerational theory that views the human family network as a complex emotional system. Bowen defined the foundational core of health as differentiation of self—the capacity of an individual to separate their own intellectual process from the surrounding family's emotional reactivity. Dysfunction occurs when high anxiety triggers multigenerational transmission processes, emotional fusion, or triangulation.
Catholic/Christian Counseling
This approach integrates the Catholic philosophical and theological worldview into the psychological therapeutic space. We look at ways to build up the virtues, gain deeper insight into our human dignity, grow in charity with God, neighbor, and ourselves. We allow a safe and secure space to address suffering, trauma, and other mental health struggles from the perspective of faith.
Our work together
We’ll make space to understand what brings you to counseling, identify concerns and goals, and explore ways to move forward. Your questions, preferences, and experience matter throughout the process.
A path toward healing. Room to flourish.
You don’t need to have everything figured out. Let’s talk about what brings you here and how I might help.