I am a Licensed Psychologist in the state of Tennessee. I currently work full-time in a primary care medical clinic, and am doing part-time work with Grow Therapy on evenings and weekends. As a Primary Care Psychologist, I am very used to finding ways to be helpful with a very wide range of problems. I have much practice contextualing problems, and identifying mechanisms that maintain things—said differently, I look at each problem through the lens of the person’s life context (which includes many things both current and historical) and then observe how things work underneath the hood. I do this all day, every day, and it is second nature. *for a more personable view of my practice, see https://www.ferrandpsych.com/
What can clients expect to take away from sessions with you?
During the first visit, we will identify your goals for this consultation. Once that is clear, I will ask a series of focused questions that will allow you to paint a portrait of your experience. You can expect that I will listen closely, and pay close attention. You can expect that I will reflect back to you what I have heard to make sure I have understood you accurately. The interview often illuminates the problem you come in with and makes clear different targets (or focal points) that we could focus treatment on. We will then work on developing a plan. Typically I will provide a menu of options and recommendations, and then get your input on the course you would like to take.
Explain to clients what areas you feel are your biggest strengths.
I have the ability to listen very deeply (beneath the narrative/story/words said), in order to catch and identify the underlying processes that potentially maintain and worsen the problem(s) we are working on together. I see patients most days of the week, and usually only get 30 minutes for visits in a medical setting. So I am well-practiced at making that time count, and am absolutely determined that our work NOT be superficial, so I have become good at catching central processes quickly (key factors that may be amplifying the problem). *to learn more about my practice, please see ferrandpsych.com
Describe the client(s) you are best positioned to serve.
You may wonder if I have experience with your particular problem and if I could help. You may wonder if I will be judgmental, or if I will be kind and understanding. You may be brand new to therapy, and not know what to look for. Or, you may have had many therapists. This could be a fairly recent problem or one that has been longstanding. You could be younger, middle-aged, or older. Whatever the case, your problem matters when we are working together. I can make some guesses that you are feeling stressed in some way, and that you are having feelings that are generally unpleasant. It may have even affected you in areas of your life like school, work, or family. I suspect you have tried to make it go away, but it hasn't gone away and that is what brings you to my page. You might have tried things like distracting yourself. You might have tried to sleep it off. Maybe you have isolated yourself. Maybe you have tried to feel better with alcohol or drugs (street or prescription). Maybe you have tried to feel better with food or buying things. Imagine you could get better. You still feel feelings, but feel strong enough and like you have the tools to handle those feelings. You still have hard thoughts at times, but you are better able to notice them and relate to them differently. You still experience memories from time to time, but you learn not to fight with them. You learn how to respond to them differently. Imagine you learn to befriend yourself (take a breath and stay with me...) You could pick anyone, so why me? First, I tend to be quite friendly, gentle, and non-threatening. I try to keep judgmentalness in check, and as a result when people tell me things they tend to quickly relax after. Taking this further, I am not the type to just listen the whole time and not give you any input. I listen the majority of the time and listen closely, though I will absolutely teach you methods and techniques to help transform your experience in (hopefully) a healthy direction. So.... clients that want to learn to actively cope will likely most enjoy working with me. Clients who really prefer someone to just listen and do not prefer to learn methods and techniques may not prefer me as a therapist.