INDIVIDUAL ADULT THERAPY
FPFS offers services to assist individuals experiencing various symptoms and problems. These include but are not limited to relationship difficulties, depression, anxiety, trauma, and symptoms/problems that often accompany diagnoses such as addictive and eating disorders.
During therapy, you will typically meet weekly, one-on-one, with one of our trained therapists. Some of our therapists are licensed Clinical Psychologists or licensed Marriage and Family Therapists. Many of our t herapists have already earned an advanced degree and continue to work at FPFS to gain additional experience prior to licensure. Most of our therapists are graduate student trainees pursuing either their doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology or their master’s degree in Marital and Family Therapy at the Fuller Graduate School of Psychology. All prelicensed therapists are under the supervision of a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and/or a licensed Psychologist.
Your therapy fee will vary by the expertise, education, and experience of your therapist. Fees for licensed therapists tend to be higher; fees for our student trainees are lower.
You may find these links useful for helping you understand individual therapy and how it works:
Understanding Psychotherapy, The American Psychological Association
Psychotherapy: Myths vs. Reality, The American Psychological Association
INDIVIDUAL CHILD/ADOLESCENT THERAPY
Psychotherapy can help children and adolescents who are experiencing difficulties with their emotions or behavior. Psychotherapy may involve an individual child, a group of children, a family, or multiple families. For children and adolescents, playing, drawing, building, and pretending, as well as talking, are important ways of sharing feelings and resolving problems.
As part of the psychotherapy process, your FPFS therapist will determine the need for psychotherapy, including whether a formal neuropsychological assessment is indicated. Your therapist can also advise you whether other treatments (medication, behavior management, or work with the school) should be considered.
The relationship that develops between the therapist and the child or adolescent is very important. The child or adolescent must feel comfortable, safe, and understood. This type of trusting environment makes it much easier for the child to express his/her thoughts and feelings and to use the therapy in a helpful way.
Psychotherapy helps children and adolescents in a variety of ways. They receive emotional support, resolve conflicts with people, understand feelings and problems, and try out new solutions to old problems. Goals for therapy may be specific (change in behavior, improved relations with friends or family), or more general (less anxiety, better self-esteem). The length of psychotherapy depends on the complexity and severity of problems. (Adapted from The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 2005.)
For more information on the mental health of children and adolescents, please click here:
Mental Health Needs of Young Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
COUPLES/FAMILY THERAPY
FPFS offers therapy to assist people in dealing with the challenging dynamics of relationships, including therapy to address couples and family relationship issues.
For couples, therapy can be helpful, whether you are considering separation or seeking improved intimacy and understanding. During therapy, the relationship is the focus, although each partner should also expect to focus on his or her own self-improvement and self-awareness. You and your partner will, among other things, address underlying communication patterns, resulting in more effective and efficient problem resolution and a deeper and more satisfying relationship.
Families (one- or two-parent households with children) often have their own unique relational and communication challenges. FPFS’s trained therapists will help your family thrive by sensitively and effectively helping you explore and address your unique familial situation, issues, and challenges.
Fees for family or couples therapy are generally higher than those for individual therapy.
If you are seeking couples therapy, you may find the following links useful:
Does Couples Therapy Work? (New York Times, March 2012)
Effect of Anger on Families, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy
PREMARITAL COUNSELING
Fuller Psychological & Family Services now offers a package of 8 premarital counseling sessions. This package is designed to help couples explore and strengthen important aspects of their relationships such as spiritual compatibility, finances, and conflict resolution. Sessions will be facilitated by therapists certified to utilize the Prepare/Enrich pre-counseling package. Contact us to schedule your first session.
GROUP THERAPY
Group therapy involves one or more therapists who lead a group of 5 to 15 clients. Typically, groups meet for 1-2 hours each week. Some people attend individual therapy in addition to groups, while others participate in groups only.
Many groups are designed to target a specific problem such as depression, panic disorder, social anxiety, chronic pain, or substance abuse. Other groups focus more generally on improving social skills, helping people deal with a range of issues such as anger, shyness, loneliness, and low self-esteem. Groups often help those who have experienced loss, whether it is a spouse, a child, or someone who died by suicide.
Fees for group therapy are generally lower than individual therapy. At this time, FPFS has multiple group options available including:
- Teens - Social Skills
- Grief Support
- Stress-Reduction
- Church Hurt
Please contact the FPFS main office for more information on these group therapy offerings.
If you are considering group therapy, please click on the following link for more information:
Understanding Group Therapy, The American Psychological Association