Hayley’s Approach
Expect Hayley to bring an authentic, curious presence to each session. You will not find the neutral, head-nodding stereotype of a therapist sitting in front of you. Instead, your experience will be nurtured by a direct, expressive, and accepting being who expresses such traits with playful humor as you collaborate in the healing space. Hayley’s practice is grounded in a psychodynamic framework, however, she considers herself eclectic in practice, pulling from a plethora of theories and a wide variety of schools of thought. Hayley is devoted to an affirming, personalized approach for every client.
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy
The name Freud rings a bell for most of us and depending on your exposure, you might cringe or feel curious. Psychodynamic theory stems from some of Freud’s original work and has evolved into the complex, relational-focused approach it is today. Simply, this lens observes experiences through relationships; early life dynamics, relationships between childhood and present time, current relationships, and the relationship between client(s) and therapist.
In psychodynamic work, clinicians use the relationship with clients to inform their understanding of patterns and challenges one might be facing. The authenticity of Hayley’s connection with clients is critical for deeper healing to take place as attachment trauma can actively be healed through corrective emotional experiences with the therapist. This can take place in both individual and partnership or family work.
Emotion-focused therapy
It might seem obvious that part of the therapeutic practice is centered on emotions, however, there is a difference between intentional emotion-focused therapy (EFT) and other methods of practice. With this intentional practice, Hayley seeks to guide clients in acknowledging, attuning to, and allowing the fullness of their emotional experience. Deepening our awareness of core emotions provides the opportunity to change our (conscious or unconscious) reactions to them and the patterns we may find ourselves in when emotionally relating to others. Combining emotion-focused work with somatic experiencing creates space for learning to engage with our feelings through the use of our incredible nervous systems to help nurture a more functional emotional landscape. Partners often seek the therapeutic space to address some sort of disconnection and through EFT, we can learn to change the “dance” of emotional disconnection and conflict we can find ourselves in with the people we love the most.
Somatic-Based
Motivated by her curiosity about the limitations of traditional medical models used in psychotherapy, Hayley landed on her path toward somatic-based healing. Through personal experience, the witnessing of journeys around her, and of course continued in-depth training, Hayley has observed the body's incredible capacity to respond to experiences in ways that either enable or hinder healing. By incorporating the intuitive wisdom of our bodies and using the nervous system as the guide and tool for regulation, we begin to align our mental/emotional, spiritual, and physical beings. Honoring and attuning to the holistic system in this way gives us a chance to increase tolerance for challenging bodily sensations and suppressed emotions, allowing for long-term healing instead of mere short-term relief. The mind has a tendency to get stuck or fixed, but the body is fluid (we are literally made up of water!); there is opportunity for thwarted survival energy to move through the body more easily than the mind.
We call this a “bottom-up” approach to healing, as opposed to "top down". Hayley’s role in somatic work is to help clients become more “embodied” in their emotional experiences, creating new patterns for managing distress and working through emotional blockages and physical tension. Hayley shows up with mindful presence, compassion, and curiosity while using her nervous system as a grounding source for clients through a process called co-regulation. In somatic approaches, we honor and attune to the cues of the nervous system and work to allow the fullness of the experience to move through us instead of avoiding or “fixing” the emotion. This is a gentle approach that honors the honed (often maladaptive) skills we each have for managing and coping with our emotions and trauma.
Couples / Partnership / Families
Through formal training, sitting with clients and humbling personal experiences, Hayley has developed a great appreciation for how messy, confusing, challenging and fulfilling our connections with others can be. She passionately seeks to hold space for relational work and healing. Hayley enjoys engaging in the trenches with partners and families to navigate whatever reasons they have for seeking a therapeutic space. An emotion-focused approach compliments her attachment and psychodynamic-centered lens in relational work by enabling Hayley to help clients tease out the "details" from the more prominent patterns at play. While engaging in the collaborative dynamic of relational therapy, Hayley brings a direct and compassionate energy to the room whether you are seeking therapy with your partner(s) for specific concerns or more general “tune up/maintenance” concerns.
Hayley’s relational work is grounded in the acknowledgment of our need for connection and regulation. With her guidance, clients can explore the ways attachment-related fears drive conflict and/or dysregulation in relationships, bringing core emotions to the surface and thus allowing Hayley to aid partners in engaging with one another’s emotional experiences in new ways. Acknowledging, attuning to, and allowing another’s full emotional experience creates safety within relationships, paving the way for increased vulnerability. Hayley guides partners in creating deeper awareness of their somatic experiences and teaches the tools necessary for increased distress tolerance and co-regulation. Hayley’s eclectic approach infused with loving awareness will help your relationships transcend old patterns while creating sustainable growth and change.
