Behavioral Issues Therapists in Lake Oswego, OR

Please, make yourself comfortable with a cozy blanket or a hot cup of tea. Then, let’s talk about you. About how life keeps wearing you out because it’s always one thing after another. But you keep going. Trying so hard to keep everything running smoothly or everyone happy. Meanwhile, you plaster on a smile, barely masking the irritability and emptiness. On really tough days, you begin to wonder if something is wrong with you. It’s a brutal cycle of spirals! Let me help you manage and heal from this!

Are you tired of struggling to thrive in relationships with friends, family, and lovers? Are your emotions running your life? Interacting with others can be overwhelming when you have experienced trauma, grief, depression or anxiety. This can lead to coping through addictions or harmful behaviors. I believe we all have the capacity to change and that focusing on strengths can give clients a new outlook on life. Together, we can practice mindfulness, reflection, and positive coping skills. I collaborate with clients to build positive experiences in a caring therapeutic relationship through talking, playing (children), and art.

Welcome to an individualized and restorative therapeutic approach. I work with adult and teenage individuals experiencing a wide range of challenges, but I specialize in using evidence-based practices to treat anxiety, addiction, depression, ADHD, and low self-esteem. To participate in therapy is to collaborate in a safe and accepting space where you can learn practical skills that facilitate meaningful long-lasting positive change in yourself and in your relationships. I believe that it is through a process of self-discovery and practice that we are able to empower ourselves to skillfully make choices that lead us toward our goals.

::: ::: Our stories are written by the things we experience: our past, our present, and what we hope will be our future. At times we come to a point when the storyline has not turned out like we expected. This may be the catalyst to begin a search to find insight and meaning for the past, hope for change in the present, and movement toward what lies ahead.

** Immediate Openings **** Are you ready to take the first step to heal from past trauma? Have you experienced unhealthy relationship patterns? Regardless, if that hurt happened in childhood, from a past relationship, or is currently present in your life, all struggles are valid and deserve attention. I'm here to provide a safe and non-judgmental environment for you to grow, gain insight, and help you along your journey toward healing and change.

Have you and your partner been sweeping things under the rug? Increased stress, broken trust, and life transitions tend to shine a spotlight on the elements of our relationships we've hoped would go away or tried our best to ignore. It can cause us to act in ways we never thought possible. When our relationship has become the source of distress we often create a negative story of our partner that is difficult to re-write. Once our mind views our partner as a source of hurt and pain, it's hard to see them as anything but potential danger.

I’m Steve Pierce, a licensed marriage and family therapist since 2012. I’m also a veteran, and a former first responder; familiar with blended families, cultural diversity, trauma, grief, and loss. After I spent several years as a therapist for a county agency, I’m now in private practice providing services throughout California and Oregon by Zoom, specializing in couples and individual therapy. I want to hear your story and your hopes. I’m confident that I can help you achieve your desired changes to “live your best life."

Experienced trauma and having some sort of related struggle? Helping you work through past/present life experiences is one of the greatest rewards as a therapist. I enjoy helping you learn how to get grounded in the present and live your best life. We can all use someone to talk to who offers us a non-judgmental, objective relationship and that really listens and supports us where we are. I provide a warm, safe environment for you to identify and process struggles that prevent you from being the best version of yourself and living the life you want. I want to help you so you can live fully!

Feeling hyperaware of your symptoms, experiences and self in general can be exhausting and often generate feelings of shame, guilt and frustration. You may feel stuck on where to go next once you've learned so much about yourself. Taking a break from your thoughts and dropping into your body can be both challenging and rewarding. You deserve a relationship with yourself that is healing, validating and connected.

Do you find yourself having intrusive thoughts about sex throughout the day that you can't stop? Are you spending too much time pursuing your sexual desires and fantasies? Are these thoughts starting to impact your relationships with your friends and family? Do you feel responsibility for the happiness of the other people in your life? Are you able to handle the thought of someone not liking you? Have you experienced trauma? Do you struggle with anxiety, depression, insomnia, or other emotions that make life feel unmanageable? With the right tools, you can live a more balanced life. I look forward to hearing your story.

I am committed to providing respect, compassion, understanding, honest feedback, structure and openness to each of my clients in order to provide the optimum conditions for you to achieve your desired outcomes. I believe that life is a journey which is unique for each person. Psychotherapy can be an important tool in helping an individual or family discover their natural ability to heal, to love and to grow.

I believe that change is always possible. While often intimidating, therapy can be the first step toward improving your life. Whether struggling with a relationship, anger management, communication skills, parenting, self-identity, depression or anxiety, I work with my clients to identify the maladaptive thought processes, roadblocks and circumstances that have led to feelings of frustration, dissatisfaction, or helplessness. I have a passion for working with individuals, couples and families to identify life goals, improve self-awareness and communication, and implement lasting change.

Have you been feeling stressed from seeing your child/teen struggle at school, at home or with friends? Is family disruption causing your child/teen to feel depressed or anxious, losing focus at school, difficulty with time management, or lack of motivation? I work with children, as young as toddler, to young adults to provide a safe space for them or with their families to find solutions to address their needs. I want to help your child/teen regain their confidence and self-esteem. I can help you and your family find a better way to view the past, learn tools to meet current circumstances and feel ready for a spotless future.

I help individuals, couples, and families achieve a sense of integrative wholeness by creating healthy connections for mind, body, and the emotional self to work effectively together rather than in opposition to one another. Often, the overlooked, the unspoken, and the unaccepted pieces of our inner selves prohibit our ability to experience a sense of wholeness. Personal challenges often become more manageable and approachable when the unknown is met with compassionate understanding.

I believe all people have within themselves the ability to move towards positive change. By creating a safe and trusting relationship and environment, I begin to facilitate my clients' abilities to accept personal responsibility for their behavior, develop autonomy, and make positive and constructive choices in their lives. I hope to empower my clients to successfully overcome traumatic and/or stressful life events and to find positive solutions to problems they may face currently or in the future.

It is my goal as a counselor to help my clients plan and use their personal strengths, resources, and supports to find new ways to live. I have experience helping people with difficulties regarding depression, anxiety, eating disorders, interpersonal communication, trauma, and addictions, as well as addressing life patterns that have impeded them from their goals and hurt their relationships.

I provide services to individuals, couples, and families, specializing in culturally competent therapy for Portland's LGBTQ community. I work with clients of various sexual, gender, and cultural backgrounds to address issues such as depression, anxiety, trauma, identity concerns, and life transitions. I collaborate with clients & their other providers to determine the focus and nature of therapy. I believe all people are oriented towards health and growth, but sometimes develop problematic ways of thinking, acting, being, and interacting. In therapy we explore areas of your life to find ways of being that help you feel more contented, balanced, and effective.

Children and adults express themselves authentically when given the freedom to play with ideas and explore their internal worlds through symbols and stories. In our hurried lives, we don't often have the time or space to process feelings and experiences that get stuck inside and come out in ways we wish they wouldn't. Both children and adults can experience deep inner healing while exploring this process in connection with a caring professional. I work with young children and their parents to increase connection and build trust using play, empathic communication, and mindful compassion and validation.

Dr. Brassell has experience working in a variety of settings including primary care behavioral health, telehealth, community mental health, and college/university counseling. She is a generalist clinician who uses CBT, ACT, and solutions-focused approaches to help patients navigate a variety of social, emotional, physical, and psychological concerns including anxiety, depression, life transitions, interpersonal/relationship distress, identity exploration, trauma, and chronic condition management.