Jump to list of current and upcoming groups below.

Who Can Benefit From Group Therapy?

Therapy groups can be especially helpful if you’re struggling with interpersonal challenges — problematic patterns in relationships, difficulties communicating or getting your needs met, or having a hard time making satisfying connections with others.

Groups are also particularly helpful if you’re having difficulties related to your own personal identity or sense of self — insecurities, fears of judgment, or feeling less in touch with who you are.

Finally, therapy groups are also a good fit if you could use some additional social support or if you don’t have many opportunities to interact with others going through similar challenges. Learning from other people’s experiences and knowing that you’re not alone can be a major benefit of group therapy.

What Is Group Therapy?

Group therapy provides powerful opportunities to explore interpersonal dynamics and develop insight into your interpersonal patterns — how you respond to others, and how these responses impact your relationships.

It also provides opportunities to receive social support and to experiment with new ways of responding and to receive valuable, constructive feedback about how others experience you.

Group therapy offers something unique over and above individual counseling or psychotherapy, and I’ve seen it serve as an important catalyst for transformation in many of my clients’ lives.

Group therapy is not just individual therapy done in a group format (watered down or — worse! — with an audience).

Likewise, therapy groups are not the same as support groups, although support is often an important element.

Rather, group therapy gives members unique opportunities to explore their own interpersonal patterns within the group context, try out new ways of being with others in the safety of the group, and receive constructive interpersonal feedback from their fellow group members about how they are experienced and how they impact others.

Members benefit from sharing openly and authentically in the group and being received with warmth and acceptance. By taking risks and sharing parts of themselves that they may normally keep hidden, they have opportunities to disconfirm their fears of how others will respond — freeing them up to take similar risks outside of group and make more room in their lives for their full, authentic selves.

Likewise, members learn from one another and benefit from witnessing each others’ struggles and growth. They also often find it beneficial to have opportunities to help others and offer feedback and support.

As the group facilitator, my role is to do just that — facilitate. Group discussion is guided by what members bring into the group and choose to discuss. My role is to create a safe space in which the group can do its work, to make observations, draw connections, ask thoughtful and probing questions, identify patterns, and redirect the discussion if the group is getting off-track.

What To Expect:

Group Structure & Format

A therapy group consists of between 4-7 members plus me, the counselor. We meet in my office for an hour and a half each week at the same time.

Groups are “closed,” meaning that we have the same group of people meeting together each week and not a constantly changing set of people — so no new people showing up unannounced. However, new members may be added to groups with some advanced notice.

Groups are typically ongoing (unless otherwise specified), meaning that there is no set end-date and members can remain in the group for as long as they continue to find it helpful. All members agree to a set of guidelines in joining the group — including maintaining the confidentiality of other members — which helps build a sense of security and trust between members.

Initial Phone Consultation

If you are interested in joining a group, the first step will be to get in touch with me to schedule a free initial phone consultation. In this conversation, we will discuss your current needs and goals and begin to get an idea if group will be a good fit for you.

Preparation to Join a Group

Following the initial phone consultation, we will meet for at least 2 sessions of individual counseling to prepare you for joining the group. In these sessions, we will continue to discuss your current struggles and goals, and we will explore some ways in which you might be able to make use of group to increase your self-awareness and experiment with new ways of relating to yourself and others.

During these individual sessions, I will also share more information with you about the group experience, and we will cover group guidelines. We will also have time to explore your expectations and any concerns or anxieties you might have about joining the group.

This preparation is important to allow you to make the most of your group experience and benefit from all it has to offer.

Upcoming & Future Groups

The following groups are not currently running but will begin as soon as they have at least 4-5 committed members.

Feel free to get in touch with me to learn more about the status of any of these groups or to schedule an initial phone consultation (free of charge).

Open-Ended (Ongoing) Groups:
• Expat Partners Group (for individuals who have moved abroad for their partners’ careers)
• Intercultural Relationships Group (for individuals whose partners come from a different cultural background)
• Women’s Group
• New Moms Abroad Group
• Third Culture Teens’ Group

Short-Term, Skills-Based Groups:
• Building Emotional Resilience Through Mindfulness Group
• Mind Your Own Emotions: An Introduction to Mindfulness For Teens

If you are interested in a group focused on a topic not mentioned here, please feel free to get in touch and let me know. I am always open to considering new group ideas if they are likely to be of interest to enough people.

Questions?

If you have any questions about group therapy or if you would like to schedule an initial phone consultation with me (free of charge), please get in touch.

To learn more about fees or for answers to other practical question, please check out my Frequently Asked Questions page.

I look forward to hearing from you!