Psychodynamic Therapists in Edwardsville, IL

Almost all of us struggle, from time to time, with worry, unhappiness, self-hate, despair and anger. With too many negative feelings, our interpersonal lives can become conflicted and dysfunctional. We may lose our friends, job, or even our life partner, Further, we may turn to any number of drugs or behaviors to try to manage our pain. Psychotherapy helps us to understand, cope with, and even change our painful feelings and behaviors. The goal is to enjoy and engage in life more fully, and move towards the goals that will give our lives meaning and value.

My life's work is to help individuals understand intimately themselves through psychotherapy. To utilize the deeper levels of the self, achieve richer relationships,and an appreciation for who they are. Primary, to successful therapy is the relationship between the client and therapist. My work: Children,Adolescents and Adults. Child/Adolescents-self esteem,depression anxiety, relationship, family issues, school issues. Adults: depression, anxiety, relationship,gender issues,grief. Psychotherapist/Psychoanalyst, child, adolescent and adult and seniors. Faculty member/the St. Louis Psychoanalytic Institute(president 2010-2013), Asst. Clinical professor, Dept. of Psychiatry, St. Louis Universityjoint appt./Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital.

I help women and teens who are struggling with depression and anxiety to find balance, hope and happiness. If you are going through a life transition that is creating stress or if you have recently had a baby and are not feeling like yourself, I can help. I have worked as a Mental Health Therapist for over 12 years in California and Washington, and am now in Illinois. I love supporting and nurturing children, teens, and families and I am very passionate about working with pregnant and postpartum women. Call me to start feeling better today.

Life is complicated and difficult. I believe that sooner or later we all are confronted with some aspect of living that is just too overwhelming to handle alone. Someone we love dies, or gets sick, money gets tight, relationships are strained, children have problems, and any number of symptoms start to emerge. At these times, we may be prone to despair and long for a deeper sense of satisfaction and desire more meaning for our lives. It is my hope that you will be courageous and ask for help now.

I believe that the clients who walk into my office are strong. They have an inner strength that is the cornerstone of change. The voice that says, "Enough, I'm taking back my life." Together, we will champion that strength to discover the blockages that have held you back or kept you suffering and create solutions and options to get you back on track. I passionately believe that you deserve better -- let's get to work. My approach to therapy is client centered and goal directed.

Are you feeling stuck, overwhelmed, uncertain? Anxious? Sad? Plagued by negative thoughts, behaviors, and/or emotional hang-ups that sabotage your happiness and well-being? Life is challenging. Life doesn't come with an instruction manual, Depression makes it hard to move. Anxiety makes it hard to breathe. Loss and sadness weigh heavy on the heart. It can be helpful to know how and why these painful conditions have emerged. It can be helpful to begin making some changes while working to enhance understanding. Starting psychotherapy can be a difficult decision. You may feel skeptical embarrassed, or scared.

Helping others find peace, healing and empowerment is the center of my work as a therapist. Drawing from several theoretical approaches, I have helped individuals work through trauma, family conflict, relationship difficulties, and life transitions. I offer a safe place to help individuals heal past wounds, improve relationships and restore balance.

Hello, I'm Sandra Becker-Warden. I have provided counseling as a clinical social worker for over 30 years. My practice, Family Life Consultants, Inc. offers services in two locations and their respective surrounding areas; Collinsville, IL, and Lake Ozark, MO. I particularly enjoy working with families and couples, I also specialize in custody mediation, body image issues and eating disorders Ages include toddlers through seniors. I believe in involving the individual's support system in the treatment process - ie. family, school, work, when appropriate. This approach allows the support systems to realize their part in the individual's emotional health.

I work with clients to define goals to work on in counseling, and to work to reinforce strengths clients already have within themselves and foster new strengths to help clients achieve their goals. I tailor clinical therapy approaches depending on the unique and specific needs of each individual. I have experience working with individuals struggling with depression, anxiety, trauma, self-esteem issues, attachment/codependency, stress management, grief, and military/Veteran issues.

I have an appreciation for complexity and understand that most of us live a life full of contradictions - striving for goodness, happiness, prosperity, low drama, and quality relationships. I get to witness clients create a foundation of safety from which they can pursue their personal and relational goals. I have a passion for working with both traditional relationships and alternative lifestyle clients, as individuals or couples. My clients are often unraveling past traumatic and toxic relationships or simply navigating the unknown with the goals of creating new, healthy patterns of communication, safety, and intimacy.

Many of the patients I have helped, voluntary and court ordered, have tried multiple ways to address their problems, including seeing different therapists and/or taking medications, but have not progressed much. Many treatment approaches are superficial, focusing on reducing the number or severity of symptoms or offering only coping skills. However, these approaches most often only provide temporary relief, but never address the underlying causes of those symptoms. A reduction in symptoms is almost never what struggling people are looking for; instead they want to know where and why problems started and how to fix them permanently.

I know that finding the right therapist can feel overwhelming, especially when you're already struggling and in need of support. I believe that feeling seen and heard can serve as a powerfully reparative experience, especially in a space of non-judgment and acceptance. I am honored and committed to providing a safe and nurturing environment to help clients connect with themselves in an emotionally vulnerable, safe, and self-compassionate way. I am a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, utilizing a neuro-biologically focused approach that restores the authentic self with self-regulation, wholeness, and a sense of aliveness.