A person with long hair fishing by a body of water at sunset or sunrise.

When you’re tired of second-guessing yourself.

You try really hard to be understanding, get it right, and not overreact. But sometimes it doesn’t take much for something deeper to get hit.

Your partner mentions you forgot to bring in the mail and suddenly it feels like an attack. You get defensive or shut down. Later, you’re hard on yourself for reacting that way and wondering if this is proof of the thing you already fear: Maybe I really am the problem.

Other times, it’s quieter. You compare yourself to everyone around you and wonder why you feel so behind. You pull inward and start worrying about whether you’re acting “right” or coming across “okay.” Sometimes you just feel kind of numb.

It’s exhausting to spend this much time monitoring yourself.

Living room with a yellow sofa, pillows, a gray sofa with a patterned pillow, a large potted plant, an open laptop, and a colorful rug, with a window on the right side.

There’s usually a reason it hits so hard.

Certain moments can land especially hard when earlier relationships and emotional experiences have shaped what you believe about yourself. Trusting your own experience can get complicated when your feelings haven’t always been met with care. Maybe speaking up feels risky. Maybe disappointing someone makes you immediately question yourself. The things that helped you stay connected in the past can make it harder to stay connected to yourself now.

Individual therapy gives us room for whatever is bringing you in. Maybe anxiety or burnout has been taking over lately. Maybe you’re working through grief, an old attachment wound, or a relationship that’s taking a lot out of you.

Sometimes you just know you don’t want to keep feeling the way you do.

A woman with curly hair smiling during a conversation, sitting on a beige armchair in a cozy living room with a bookshelf and large window letting in natural light.
A woman with curly hair smiling during a conversation, sitting on a beige armchair in a cozy living room with a bookshelf and large window letting in natural light.

You’re allowed to trust yourself.

Therapy isn’t about becoming someone who never gets anxious or has a wonky reaction. It’s about knowing yourself well enough to recognize what you’re feeling and trust that it matters.

You can get better at speaking up when something doesn’t sit right and asking for what you need. And when someone else has a less-than-great reaction to your honesty, it doesn’t have to send you straight into Oh shit, did I do something wrong?

You can stay connected to yourself while being connected to someone else.

Let’s chat.

I offer individual therapy in person in San Diego and virtually throughout California. If you’re curious about working together, fill out the contact form and tell me a little about what’s going on. I’ll reach out from there and we can chat.