Monica Pina (She/Her)

I have worked with many clients in helping them find the root or underlying causes of their anxiety (worries and fears). Together we will explore and establish your own personal tools needed in order to learn how to relax, develop healthier coping mechanisms and then find the right problem-solving skills that will eventually make you feel empowered instead of what led you to therapy.

When one goes through a divorce, one is sometimes angry and sad, probably distressed more so for the kids and of course the family's future. It is understandable to feel overwhelmed, anxious and even depressed. I will help you maneuver through the stages brought about from said divorce, such as denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance. Then find rational perspective with a "new" role, new communication strategies a sense of co-parenting while relearning your new identity.

The most prevalent goal I use for my clients dealing with trauma is to help my clients develop more adequate coping strategies, find a sense of hope using cognitive therapy and then quickly begin with strategies such as relaxation training, stress reduction exercises, cognitive modulation of affect through self-talk before we begin discussing the trauma in sessions. Trauma-focused CBT helps one who has been abused to better manage distressing feelings to deal with trauma-related memories.

DBT is a highly effective form of therapy that treats many different issues. In DBT you will learn two seemingly different and opposite strategies: acceptance and change. You will learn to accept certain experiences, emotions, as well as accept that our behaviors are reactions, thus valid and in order to make positive changes requires that we manage our emotions in order to move forward. It is then when we find deeper meaning through a "spiritual" existence.

CBT can be described as the foundation of most therapies for changing behavior. CBT teaches coping mechanisms to deal with stress and other negative situations. Another benefit of CBT is in how it helps clients manage emotions. CBT also helps one become aware of inaccurate or negative thinking to view challenging situations more clearly, then respond in a more effective way. CBT can help a person make positive changes to how one feels/acts while equipped with coping strategies learned in session

As an Eclectic therapist I am skilled and use many theoretical approaches that draw from a multiple set of techniques to help my clients. Some are: Brief therapy Cognitive therapy Social-cognitive learning theory Behavioral therapy CBT DBT Person-centered therapy and techniques that include exposure therapy, sensory therapy, relaxation therapy that helps Anxiety Bipolar Coping/adjustment difficulties Depression PTSD Relationship problems Selective mutism Social issues Stress

I specialize in helping those with depression and have private practice as well as clinical experience doing so. I believe patience and understanding rather than judgmental views are the same thing as using accusatory words. Working with me you will realize that it takes time and with genuine understanding it will take little effort to work with someone who struggles with depression and that includes having faith in yourself.

I have years of experience working with women in dealing with issues such as relationship, trauma, career issues, long-term stigmatization and/or identity . These concerns might be related to gender stereotyping or a lack of confidence stemming from past trauma, or assumptions and concerns related to women's health, but they are also likely to include other challenges faced by women that have nothing to do with gender. My goal is to help you find your path toward healing and empowerment.

Systemic desensitization involves several phases such as learning muscle relaxation techniques to create a list of the fears impacting you to rank them in terms of intensity to then focus directly on altering the emotions, thoughts and responses resulting from traumatic experiences. However, EMDR therapy focuses directly on the memory in order to change the way the memory is stored in your brain, and therefore reduces and/while eliminating the problematic symptoms preventing you from recovery.

Trauma therapy is a form of therapy that can help you deal with the emotional response caused by a traumatic event. I use a variety of modalities to treat trauma: Prolonged Exposure (PR), Cognitive processing therapy (CPT), and Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). Every single one is to challenge your thoughts/beliefs of the trauma that provokes certain behaviors with techniques such as: Imaginal exposure, written account, impact statement, and cognitive restructuring.