Alison Tripptree Psy.D.

From the beginning of therapy, I want to establish a relationship with you that is interactive and honest. I want the therapy relationship to feel as comfortable and safe as possible so that you feel that you have agency in the therapy process. Oftentimes, our symptoms are signals of emotions and experiences that we have been ignoring, either consciously or not. Symptoms tend to disappear once we start to acknowledge and understand these emotions. You can always say as much or as little as you feel comfortable, and I will be there to help regulate the intensity of any emotions so that you are not too overwhelmed. My aim in our relationship is for you to feel less alone.

My therapeutic approach is described as relational psychodynamic emotion-focused therapy. This approach focuses on understanding the patterns in your relationships in the past and present, as well as the related thoughts and emotions. When we are young, we learned ways to cope with our feelings and usually these strategies were effective and helpful at the time. However, these ways of coping frequently do not serve us anymore and in fact, disrupt our growth. We will aim to add flexibility to these strategies so you have more options when responding to a situation.

I have considerable experience working with individuals who have experienced developmental and relationship trauma. There is no one specific definition of trauma. Trauma is defined by your experience and the ways in which it has affected you. We will pace this process to allow for development of safety prior to talking about traumatic experiences. At times, pain and distress can be wordless, and I will be there to sit in that silence with you. I will also try to model speaking about the unspeakable and help you find the language for these emotions and experiences.

I have specific experience working with individuals with eating concerns and eating disorders, as well as self-harming behavior (e.g. cutting, scratching, hitting self). While each of these diverge in the cause, function, and related emotions, the approach we will take is similar. We will try to understand the reasoning behind this behavior and what it might represent. It is also important to understand the emotions that lead to these symptoms so that we can find other ways to process and express these feelings.

I also have significant experience working with individuals who are exploring or have concerns about their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. We will discuss what specific words, phrases, and labels mean to you. We can focus on your identity development and how you want to incorporate this part of yourself into your life. We can also discuss conflicts that have arisen within yourself, important others, and how you are treated in the world since questioning and/or acknowledging this part of your identity.