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"Helping people liberate themselves from suffering is the greatest gift."

Reclaim the Joy of Living
Calm your mind and heal your heart
with tools for genuine happiness.

What is mindfulness psychotherapy?
Mindfulness psychotherapy is interactive, insightful and focused on helping you make change a reality. Mindfulness is evidence-based treatment for depression, anxiety, addiction, trauma, emotion dysregulation and chronic pain. Freeing the mind from fixation and unwinding tightness in the heart and body helps us to relax and enjoy life. This work will help you learn to meet life's challenges with enthusiasm, wisdom and joy. I practice skills-based, depth-oriented psychotherapy that combines the best of psychodynamic therapy, CBT, and somatic experiencing (SE) with practical mindfulness and compassion practices. I work with adults struggling with depression, anxiety, trauma, substance-use problems, chronic pain and emotion dysregulation; professionals in high-stress careers or life transition; couples in distress; depressed, anxious, or stressed adolescents.

How do mindfulness and compassion increase well-being?
Mindfulness psychotherapy decreases mental and emotional distress through active cultivation of mental clarity, inner calm, compassion, emotional equanimity, and greater resilience. When we can be with things as they actually are without habitual negativity, increased well-being, creative problem solving, and skillful responses arise naturally. This modality emphasizes the cultivation of three main areas of human development: 1) insight or wisdom, 2) skillful behavior, and 3) lovingkindness and compassion for self and others. Mindfulness and compassion are the core of a life lived with enthusiasm and joy and the path to returning yourself to wellness.

How do our negative thoughts about ourselves harm us?
Unfortunately, the internal narratives most people tell themselves about themselves are quite negative. It is remarkable how many people I work with report feeling trapped by thoughts of self-loathing, self-judgment, self-blame, and self-doubt. Generally, these limiting, negative internal narratives are not only untrue, but they prevent us from directly knowing experience as it actually is. The real story of you is one of self-efficacy, lovableness, kindness, and generosity. The real story of life is one of challenge and total possibility.

What is mindfulness psychotherapy like for couples?
Learning how to engage in respectful, honest, compassionate communication is a core skill that I impart to couples and families. Mindfulness is a central part of learning to listen deeply to others and express ourselves to others with honesty and skillfulness, creating optimal conditions for setting limits and making requests. Mindfulness helps us see where relationships have veered off-course so we can rebuild trust and intimacy—even from the ashes of an affair or other forms of interpersonal harm. Cultivating compassion and lovingkindness toward all beings (including ourselves) is critical for healing all of our relationships.

What is genuine mental health?
It is an aspiration to flourish no matter what life brings. This inner joy is not dependent upon the existence of agreeable circumstances or pleasurable objects. In fact, like the lotus that grows in mud, human flourishing blossoms best in life’s most challenging moments. Mindfulness psychotherapy allows us, even in times of difficulty to experience the mind in its natural state: a wellspring of innate radiant, clarity. This is the happiness that comes from knowing our own true nature.

5-Week MBRP coming soon!

©2005-2013 Lisa Dale Miller
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Disclaimer
The information on any area or page of this site is intended for information purposes only regarding an available clinical service. The diagnosis or treatment of any particular disorder by the information provided on this website, or the links referred to by this website, is not recommended, intended, nor implied. No therapeutic relationship exists between Lisa Dale Miller, MFT and individuals wishing to e-mail or telephone her for information or to schedule an appointment. A therapeutic relationship, if appropriate, will be agreed upon in writing following an initial consultation. If a psychotherapyrelationship is not possible, for whatever reason, appropriate referrals may be provided..