Deena Hitzke (She, Her, Hers)

I have worked with people experiencing anxiety and depression for 26 years, utilizing coping skills education, cognitive processing, and sensory integration techniques. I encourage people to get in touch with how their body informs them of stress and anxiety long before their brain does, so that they can engage in self care to minimize its impact. I am trained in art, drama, and dance therapy, sensory integration work, and psychoanalysis, in addition to cognitive processing.

Anxiety, depression, and grief are part of the natural human experience. But, at times, they can reach a level of intensity that is overwhelming. I teach Emotional Freedom Techniques, Progressive Relaxation, Reflective Practice/ Mindfulness to help people not to feel so overwhelmed.

I like to do a lot of processing, mainly because I believe that the answers are in your head somewhere already. I basically teach people how to identify errors in thinking or perception, and how to reframe, deconstruct, reconstruct, and author their narrative identity. I also examine the relationships between beliefs, feelings, intents, and actions, in order to help people develop ways to enhance the way they function in relationships, at work, and at home.

I help people pinpoint the social, environmental, and health factors contributing to depression, acknowledging and addressing the physical challenges and mental anguish it can cause. Like anxiety and grief, depression is often made worse when it comes unexpectedly. The more aware we are of the patterns of our emotions, the better we can prepare for and respond to periods of despair. I help people track and analyze what is going on, to find the best treatment for them.

The stories we live by can impact the severity and duration of the pain we experience when we lose someone or something of significance. Grief and loss are also complicated by a lot of other things that come up rather unexpectedly following a shock or loss of some sort, such as abandonment, past regrets or failures, or even just a change in daily routines or surroundings. I approach grief and loss in a manner that memorializes the loss, to celebrate life and learning.

Anxiety is often triggered by people, places, or things in a way that come as a shock to us. This leaves us unprepared to manage the upheaval that it causes. I help people to get better at finding out what buttons get pushed, and how to uninstall them. Identifying triggers is the first step toward getting a handle on anxiety. However, sometimes people require more than therapy to address more chronic and severe anxiety, in which case I believe in partnering with medical providers to help.

I help my patients to identify coping and problem solving skills, clarify values and purpose, and free themselves from imposed stigma, negative stereotypes, and diminishing views of self. The process involves exploring and reframing pivotal moments in psychosocial development.

I help patients to identify thought patterns that are driving maladaptive behaviors, and replacing them with thoughts that enhance overall daily functioning and mind-body-spirit connections. The process involves cognitive processing of you week or day, examining what if scenarios, and targeting specific behaviors or patterns to change.

I help patients to identify how key attachments in our lives can influence our ability to explore and embrace living in the question, which is necessary for healing. The process is 16 weeks in length, structured, and psychoeducational, resulting in life-long learning, self-determination, and growth.