Peter “PJ” Adams, Phd., HSP-P
People pursue counseling for all kinds of reasons. Often, they feel like no one understands them, they are uncertain about how things can improve in their life, or they simply feel a motivation to explore themselves, grow, and change. Others want to be heard, to have their feelings validated or challenged, or just feel lost and in need of clarity and guidance. All of these reasons are important and should not be diminished. As I partake in my own journey toward personal growth and healing, I realize that we may all feel out of place, misunderstood, or invisible in different ways. My goal is to help people feel seen, understood, and validated for these are some of the most important feelings we can experience. As a therapist, I believe in your uniqueness and want to connect to it so that the experience can be as personalized as possible. I also hold respect and admiration for the courage it takes to pursue change. Even as we fret or suffer, it is almost always easier to sit idle and not move toward change because growth can be scary. While I do believe a therapist can provide connection, guidance, and insight into one’s problems, I think all clients have within them a set of personal strengths that can be utilized toward their goals. As such, helping clients feel more emotionally empowered in their lives is very important to me. We all carry in us the potential for happiness, peace, self-love, and wisdom, and I hope to be someone who can help you feel that those are all things you deserve.
Professionally and personally, I have a passion for social justice work and am driven to help all people successfully navigate an increasingly complex multicultural society. As technology shrinks the world, we are exposed to an ever more diverse set of people, communities, ideas, and perspectives. Whether we are a part of historically privileged or oppressed communities, all of us are working to find our place in this neo-diverse society. More and more, I see this challenge represented in my clients as they seek understanding of their issues, strengths, and identities.
My clinical interests and experience are broad and cover anxiety, depression, adjustment, stress management, trauma, social challenges, relationships, conflict management, family dynamics, anger, grief, self-esteem/worth, sleep hygiene, career exploration, identity development, existential concerns, and many others.
I have particular interest in cultural and identity factors with expertise integrating race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender expression and identity, socioeconomic class, spiritualism, men’s issues, and women’s issues into the work. I work primarily with older adolescents and adults and look to provide growth experiences through individual, group, and couples therapy. With couples, I like to help illuminate the needs of each individual while gaining clarity on unhealthy patterns that have developed around the ineffective expression of those needs. I also like to focus on increasing intimacy, partnership, and an understanding that both individuals are seeking the same thing – love and acceptance. Multicultural counseling, Interpersonal Process Therapy, Emotion-Focused Therapy, and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) are my primary influences but I also incorporate Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), mindfulness, Solution-focused Therapy, Existential Therapy, and many other interventions into my practice.
If you have any questions about my clinical experiences or work with specific communities please feel free to contact me and I will be happy to respond.