The Mending Place, Leslie Vriesman LMFT

**NOW ACCEPTING CLIENTS** As a couple and family therapist I have specialized training in treating complex relational issues. I am trained to see individuals in the context of the greater relational systems to which they belong. Therefore, therapy, even individual therapy takes into consideration the interconnections of people with their families of origin, communities, and any other system to which they belong. My areas of expertise include Trauma, Attachment Issues, Premarital Counseling, Grief and Loss, Life Transitions and Intimacy/Relationship Issues. I work with couples and families to improve connection and foster secure and healthy attachments. My approach is eclectic but is based on Emotion Focused Therapy, which addresses negative cycles of interaction and helps restore trust, heal broken relationships, increase intimacy and improve communication. In my individual work I tend to take a more psychodynamic approach, focused on increasing self-awareness and understanding of one's deepest self. I also use play therapy, art therapy and sand tray therapy with children. Together we will explore how your past experiences and relationships inform how you live and function in the present, and will move into a space where you can gain a better understanding your emotions, needs and desires in order to live life more authentically and relate to others in healthier ways. I absolutely love that it is my job to form trusting, therapeutic relationships with others. In my work, I find deep meaning, but I also aim to help my clients grow and reach their potential by supporting their personal and interpersonal growth in an empathic, loving and genuine way. More specifically, I love helping others better understand their behaviors, emotions and relational patterns so they might choose how they want to live, rather than go through life without awareness.