Find a Therapist in Mount Vernon, Virginia.

Robyn E. Brickel, M.A., LMFT, LLC works with clients on a range of issues and concerns and has experience with clients of all ages, backgrounds, and belief systems. The foundation of effective therapy is a safe, trusting and collaborative relationship. We will work with you to develop a plan that is tailored to your goals and needs. Robyn's treatment style is active and supportive. Robyn's goal is to help you uncover your true potential and lead a life that is worth celebrating. While we can't change difficult situations of the past, we can work together to better understand and resolve challenges in your life.

While each of us brings somewhat different training to psychotherapy, we are united in providing respectful, effective, caring and collaborative treatment to our clients. We have varying specialties, but we all help explore people’s inner worlds and emotions, relationships, and sense of self. We believe that all people have the capacity to heal and the ability to become more loving to themselves and the people in their lives. Among us, we are trained in Emotionally Focused Therapy, CBT, EMDR, Sand-play, Family Therapy, Child Centered Therapy, Internal Family Systems, and Psycho-dyamic theories.

Psychotherapy is sacred work, and I hold a very safe and honest space for people to show up authentically. I use different modalities, but the most important factor is to have deep compassion and let the person know you care. Humor is essential, and there is as much laughing as crying in my office. I have been doing this work for nearly 30 years, and I am still in awe of the capacity people have to change.

I work with individuals and couples to provide the right therapy for each person who comes to see me. Through a variety of approaches, we work to find the causes of issues and concerns, develop responses and strategies to address them, and practice these new coping mechanisms to work through (or around) the issues, and turn negative thoughts into positive ones. Through a variety of therapeutic approaches, including emotionally focused couples therapy, family attachment therapy, grief therapy, interpersonal psychotherapy, and psychoanalysis, we can work together to help you get to a happier place.

Life can present you with difficult situations which are hard to process and move past. These challenges are not on your timeline and affect everything. Having worked in many healthcare settings, I am familiar navigating life-changing events and grief. I understand the territory of encountering loss, coping with trauma, the complexity of the medical system and living with illness. These issues can have ripple effects on your relationships, sense of self and perceptions of the world. I know how complex things can get, and I will support you during this process.

We are complex beings, shaped in all sorts of ways by our past and present relationships and experiences. We all need people in our life who can help us better understand ourselves, who we are, where we have come from, and where we want to go. I would be honored to have that role in your life, and to help you become more whole, more free, more yourself. You don't have to be stuck--our brains are built with the ability to grow and heal, and I would love to help you experience that.

Psychotherapy is the talking cure. If you are looking for a therapist, that means that you have recognized that things can be better. Our conversations will continue the work that you have started. As you talk about your difficulties in the present and your vision for the future, you will start to identify what needs to change and how it needs to change. Together we will develop the strategies of how to make that happen.

My first task in psychotherapy is to provide a safe and secure environment. I provide my clients with care, calmness, respect and stability to help address life challenges in new ways. Being non-judgmental, open-minded, empathetic and listening with respect helps set the stage for the deeper work that needs to be done. I help my clients evaluate whether their present life choices are providing what he or she wants. I also help my clients become aware of and transform the mental, emotional, interpersonal and/or behavioral strategies that cause his/her suffering. My approach to psychotherapy is to help clients become what he/she wants to become, to be better equipped to deal with life’s challenges, and to be in a greater state of health and harmony.

My approach to counseling revolves around the idea that our dissatisfaction with life is rooted in the reality that the world we exist in is greatly removed from the world we want to live in. In therapy we will learn to adjust our expectations of our ideal world, but more importantly we will discover our ability to change the world we live in. Through this journey we will become better acquainted with your resilience and potential!

Here's what it comes down to: We all bump/hit/slam into obstacles that hold us back from creating meaningful, vibrant lives. And we all need effective help sometimes. What makes therapy the most effective? (1) The quality of the connection and trust you have with your therapist, and (2) your therapist's level of experience. Helping people get traction to get beyond those obstacles is what I've been doing for more than 20 years, and it's what I love to do. I bring together different approaches to suit your needs, and I’m compassionate, straightforward, and authentic. Let's find out if we'll work well together.

What is psychotherapy? Some people say “psychotherapy is the treatment to work on your personal situation”, and others say “psychotherapy is the place for you to talk about your problem and your therapist will work with you to figure out the better way to manage it” Well…both of them are correct. When you seek therapy, that does not mean you are weak. In fact, attending therapy is a brave behavior as you allow yourself to be vulnerable in front of another person (your therapist), and you are willing to touch on some undesirable characteristics about yourself and work on that. By doing so, you are getting closer to your true self and make your life more beautiful than ever.

You look for psychotherapy when something is wrong, when you are fed up with not being able to get something you need. At the same time, there are some good things in your life and you have strengths. I will listen to you carefully and become your ally. Together we will discover how you are creating what you don't want, and come up with strategies to go toward what you do want. I have much experience and many great tools to put at your service. My satisfaction is to see my clients become more in charge of their lives - and happier!

I provide psychotherapeutic services to adult individuals and couples. Together we will explore areas that create conflict and stressors in your environment and relationships and develop helpful strategies that contribute to a healthier, joyful, and more serene lifestyle. Give therapy a try - you are worthy of healthy lifestyle change! Make a good day - - be well. Give us a call for a free phone consult. 242.292.6127