Mike Hofstetter (He/Him)

Whether you be a nurse, firefighter, police officer, therapist, teacher, environmental activist, corporate executive, caretaker, parent or anything else, the tasks of life and of work can be incredibly demanding. We can be worn out to the point of physical, mental and spiritual exhaustion. I have a great deal of experience helping others thru the experience of burnout and have had to navigate it myself in a previous career.

Our culture has not left a lot of room for men to feel and experience their emotions authentically. Dropping the mask, sharing how we really are and finding genuine support can be incredibly hard in a society that until recently has promoted a sort of 'man up' mentality. Being true to ourselves and seeking support is an incredibly brave step. I have a wealth of experience helping other men thru pornography addiction, relationship issues, anger management, etc.

Addictions are almost the norm in our society. Alcohol and other substances, technology, pornography, food, work, even other people (codependency) can all form addictive patterns that can range from being hardly noticeable to all consuming and debilitating. If there is some part of you that wants to break free from old habits that have controlled your life and made it unmanageable I can help you land inside yourself again, touch solid ground and move forward with serenity and joy.

The human experience can, at times, be quite confusing and overwhelming. I find it deeply rewarding to help others create meaning around the experiences they have lived thru. A new understanding, respect and even appreciation can be cultivated as to how our experiences have shaped us. Profound transformation and radical change can happen both thru epiphany as well as gradually as we begin to recognize the power we each have inside ourselves to determine our own destiny and attitude towards life.

Mindfulness is the art of becoming aware of what is actually happening right now. That awareness can be outside of ourselves and taken in thru our physical senses, like our eyes and ears, or it can be within us, such as recognizing thoughts, urges, physical sensations, emotions and the like. Thru active, practical exercises conducted in session, an increased awareness of yourself and the world about you allows for deeper understanding and the opportunity for new behavior and choices.

Traditionally developed for Borderline Personality Disorder, DBT is effective for a wide range of issues including depression, trauma, anxiety, addiction and more. I worked at a clinic for two years that used primarily this model of therapy and found it to be a wonderful model. It's balance of acceptance vs change, emphasis on mindfulness, effectiveness, a non-judgmental stance, and emotional regulation have been powerful influences on how I typically conduct a session with clients.