Julie Anderson

 

I was raised in a working-class family that believed in bootstraps and quietly bearing life’s trials.  When things become too difficult, there was alcohol.  Therapy was for other people, viewed with a mixture of skepticism and opposition. 

 

Life experience shapes us in many ways.  For me, it made for an indirect path to finding my calling.  This journey has reinforced my deeply-held belief that being able to reach out to others is an under-recognized strength, I have a profound appreciation for how difficult it can be to seek out help.

 

Are you debating whether your problems warrant starting this journey?  Or whether “therapy works”?  Or what others will think?  All the thoughts and reservations you are experiencing are understandable, and I want to acknowledge the courage it took to take this first step.

 

I believe that everyone can benefit from working with a trained therapist or coach.  We are not here to “fix” you, or your problems, but to help you access your own strengths and abilities to meet the challenges you face. 

 

 

Approach

 

My approach is dynamic, collaborative, and client-focused.  I support clients to both explore inward and reach outward to strengthen relationships while navigating life’s transitions.  Together we will create a safe space to examine hopes, dreams, goals, and actions that may be impacting how you want to be in the world.

 

I work from the belief that closeness and intimacy are integral to healthy relationships.  Life’s demands can take their toll on how a couple connects physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually.  Any couple may start to feel disconnected in some or all of these areas leading to feelings of loneliness and isolation. 

 

Showing up for each other means honoring each partner’s strengths and needs.  In therapy, we will identify goals and patterns of interaction and work collaboratively to create new communication patterns that grow from a place of open-heartedness and connection.

 

 

Other areas

 

Infertility, ART, and post-partum depression

Nothing is more natural than having a child, except when it isn’t.  I understand when the journey to parenthood does not go as anticipated.   From fertility treatments to childbirth to post-partum depression, things have a way of defying best-laid plans.  The process of becoming parents and the feelings around parenthood can be complicated and have a profound impact on your intimate relationships.

 

Sandwich Generation

You are in the Sandwich Generation if you are caring for both children and aging parents.  Squeezed in the middle, are you juggling the delicate and demanding tasks of caring for everyone but yourself?  Is it any surprise your relationship is also suffering?  I am particularly versed in supporting clients who have become caregivers for parents or spouses experiencing dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease.

 

Neurodiversity

The goal is not to help the neurodiverse “fit into” the neurotypical world.  While a square peg can probably be forced into a round hole, that might only work by damaging or changing the peg.  Instead, we seek to build upon the strengths and strategies that each person brings when creating attachments with those around them.

 

We honor each person’s uniqueness by creating a respectful, nonjudgmental space that will allow a safe place for growth and connection to flourish, both inside and outside the therapeutic experience. 

 

Co-parenting

Sharing a parenting relationship is among the most enduring experiences in life. Even after the dissolution of a marriage, connection through children remains. When one co-parent is neurodivergent there may be additional communication and executive function challenges that further complicate this delicate relationship. 

 

Creatives and Highly Sensitive Individuals

Before making this career transition I worked for decades in the arts.  In my current practice, I specialize in working with writers, actors, musicians, and other individuals who identify as “highly sensitive.”

 

Background and Education

 

I was raised in the Chicago area, the only girl out of four children and the first person in my family to go to college.  I received a B.A. from Johns Hopkins University, then an M.A, New York University, eventually leaving a Ph.D. program at NYU to pursue a career in theater and film.

 

During this time, I found myself questioning the beliefs I held about therapy, especially when I had post-partum depression after the birth of my twins, and then when my son and daughter experienced challenges due to neurodiversity and the strain our children’s needs brought to my marriage.

 

Stuck at home during the pandemic, with arts on hiatus, I realized I could either finish watching everything on Netflix or go back to school and pursue the career I had long been interested in pursuing.  I received an M.A. in Clinical Psychology/Marriage and Family Therapy from Touro University. I am currently enrolled in a Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D) program at California Southern University concentrating on counseling and neurodiversity.

 

 

Areas of focus

• Affair Recovery

• Ambiguous Grief

• Caregiver Support

• Co-Parenting

• Couples Counseling

• Creative Support

• Divorce Recovery

• Infertility

• Kink-Aware

• LGBTQIA+ Allied

• Life Transitions

• Neurodiversity

• Parent Coaching

• Poly Friendly

• Sex Therapy​

• Sex Positive

  

Modalities

• Coaching

• Emotionally-Focused Therapy (EFT)

• Existential Therapy

• Experiential Therapy

• Internal Family Systems (IFS)

• Narrative Therapy

• Polyvagal Theory

• Psychodynamic

• Trauma-Informed Therapy

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Clients

• Couples

• Individuals

• Families

  

License

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, LMFT #149338

Supervised by Dr. Harry Motro, LMFT #53452

Employed by New Path Couples Therapy Inc.

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Contact

Phone:  (424) 645-1616

 Email:  julieandersonmft@gmail.com

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