Finding Freedom Through Psychological Flexibility - From the Comfort of Your Own Space
If you're a high-achieving adult who appears successful on the outside but feels stuck, anxious, or disconnected on the inside, you're not alone. Many accomplished individuals struggle with the gap between their external achievements and internal well-being. Through online Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), I help clients develop psychological flexibility—the ability to stay present with difficult emotions while taking meaningful action aligned with their deepest values—all from the privacy and convenience of your chosen environment.
As a PSYPACT-credentialed therapist, I provide online therapy exclusively to clients across nine states: Arizona, Connecticut, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Maryland, Washington DC, Virginia, Colorado, Florida and Illinois. Whether you're a burned-out professional in DC, a tech executive in Colorado, or a healthcare provider in Connecticut, I bring evidence-based ACT therapy directly to you through secure video sessions.
Understanding Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in Virtual Practice
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy represents a profound shift in how we approach emotional and psychological challenges. Rather than viewing difficult thoughts and feelings as problems to eliminate, ACT recognizes them as natural parts of the human experience. This evidence-based approach, grounded in behavioral science and mindfulness practices, translates remarkably well to online therapy, where you can practice new skills in your actual living or working environment.
At its core, ACT focuses on helping you develop psychological flexibility—your ability to stay open, present, and engaged with your life, even when facing discomfort. This flexibility becomes your foundation for navigating life's challenges while staying true to what matters most to you. Through my trauma-informed and neurodivergent-affirming lens, I adapt ACT principles to match how your unique brain and nervous system function, whether you're joining me from your home office in Virginia or your apartment in Chicago.
How ACT Differs From Traditional Therapy Approaches
Traditional therapy often emphasizes changing or eliminating negative thoughts and feelings. ACT takes a fundamentally different path. Instead of engaging in an exhausting struggle with your inner experience, ACT teaches you to change your relationship with difficult thoughts and emotions. You learn to observe them without being controlled by them, creating space for choice and intentional action.
This approach proves particularly powerful for high-functioning individuals across metropolitan areas like Washington DC, northern New Jersey, and Phoenix who've already tried various strategies to "fix" themselves. ACT acknowledges that some discomfort is inherent in a meaningful life. The goal isn't to eliminate all negative experiences but to build a rich, full life that includes the entire spectrum of human emotion.
The Six Core Processes of ACT in Online Therapy
Contact with the Present Moment
Through our virtual sessions, I guide clients in developing mindful awareness of their immediate experience. Online therapy offers unique advantages here—you're already in your natural environment, making mindfulness practices immediately applicable to your daily life. Whether you're in your Rhode Island home or Maryland office, we work on noticing what's happening right now—in your body, your thoughts, and your environment—without judgment. For neurodivergent clients, I adapt mindfulness practices to work with, rather than against, your natural processing style.
Acceptance
Acceptance means making room for uncomfortable feelings rather than exhausting yourself trying to control or eliminate them. In our online sessions, I help you develop a gentler relationship with difficult emotions, recognizing them as temporary experiences rather than defining features of who you are. This process looks different for everyone, and I carefully tailor my approach based on your comfort level and readiness, regardless of which state you're connecting from.
Cognitive Defusion
Your thoughts are just thoughts—they don't have to dictate your actions. Through cognitive defusion techniques adapted for virtual delivery, I teach clients to step back and observe their thoughts rather than being entangled in them. We might explore how certain thought patterns have developed protective functions while recognizing when they no longer serve you. These exercises work exceptionally well in online therapy, where you can practice them in your actual daily environment.
Self-as-Context
You are not your thoughts, feelings, or experiences—you're the conscious being observing them. This perspective shift can be profoundly liberating, especially for clients who feel defined by their anxiety, depression, or past trauma. Through our secure video sessions, I help you connect with this observing self, creating a stable sense of identity that remains constant despite changing thoughts and emotions.
Values Clarification
What truly matters to you? In our online work together, we'll explore your core values—not what you think should matter, but what genuinely resonates with your authentic self. For burned-out high achievers from Connecticut's financial sector to Arizona's tech industry, this process often reveals disconnections between daily actions and deeper values, illuminating pathways toward more meaningful engagement with life.
Committed Action
Knowledge without action rarely creates change. I support clients in taking concrete steps aligned with their values, even when anxiety or discomfort arises. The online format means you can immediately practice these actions in your real environment—your home, your workspace, wherever you feel most comfortable. We break down overwhelming goals into manageable actions, always respecting your capacity and current life circumstances.
Who Benefits Most From Online ACT Therapy
My virtual ACT approach particularly resonates with clients across all nine PSYPACT states experiencing:
Burnout Despite Success: Whether you're a professional in the DC metro area, a healthcare provider in New Jersey, or an entrepreneur in Denver, ACT helps you reconnect with your values and create sustainable ways of engaging with work and life.
Anxiety That Persists Despite Understanding: You intellectually understand your anxiety patterns but still feel controlled by worry and fear. Through online ACT sessions, we work on changing your relationship with anxiety rather than trying to eliminate it entirely.
Depression and Emotional Numbness: When life feels colorless despite having "everything," ACT offers pathways to reconnect with meaning and vitality without forcing positivity or denying genuine struggles.
Neurodivergent Challenges: For autistic and ADHD clients across all states I serve, I adapt ACT techniques to honor your unique processing style, sensory needs, and executive functioning differences. Online therapy allows you to engage from a sensory-friendly environment you control.
Life Transitions: Whether you're navigating career changes in Virginia's tech corridor, relationship shifts in Illinois, or identity questions anywhere in between, ACT provides tools for staying grounded in your values while moving through uncertainty.
My Integrative Approach to ACT in Virtual Practice
While ACT forms a powerful foundation, I don't practice it in isolation. My training in multiple modalities allows me to weave complementary approaches into our online work when appropriate. For instance, I might incorporate:
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Somatic awareness from Polyvagal Theory to help you understand and regulate your nervous system responses, even through a screen
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DBT skills for moments when you need concrete tools for emotional regulation
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IFS perspectives to understand different parts of yourself with compassion
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Mindfulness practices adapted to your specific needs and online format
This integrative approach means I can respond flexibly to what emerges in each virtual session, always keeping your bigger therapeutic goals in focus while meeting you exactly where you are—both emotionally and geographically.
What to Expect in Online ACT Sessions With Me
Initial Virtual Consultation and Assessment
Our journey begins with a free 15-minute online consultation where you can ask questions and share what brings you to therapy. I'll assess whether my ACT approach aligns with your needs, ensuring we're a good therapeutic fit before you invest your time and energy. This consultation is available to residents of Arizona, Connecticut, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Maryland, Washington DC, Virginia, Colorado, and Illinois.
During our 90-minute online intake session, we'll explore your history, current challenges, and hopes for therapy through an ACT lens. I'll pay attention to your values, the strategies you've already tried, and how your unique brain and nervous system respond to different situations—all while you remain in the comfort of your chosen space.
Ongoing Virtual Treatment Structure
Each online session builds on the last while remaining responsive to your immediate needs. Through our secure video platform, I might guide you through experiential exercises, mindfulness practices, or values exploration activities. We'll examine the workability of your current coping strategies—not judging them as good or bad, but asking whether they move you toward or away from the life you want to live.
The online format offers unique advantages for practicing ACT skills. You can immediately apply techniques in your actual environment, making the learning more relevant and transferable. I offer practical exercises and skills to practice between sessions when you have the capacity. These aren't mandatory assignments but opportunities to deepen your learning.
Progress and Adaptation in Virtual Therapy
ACT isn't about quick fixes or temporary symptom relief. It's about developing a fundamentally different relationship with your inner experience. Some clients experience shifts quickly, while others need more time to integrate these concepts. I track our progress not just by symptom reduction but by increases in psychological flexibility and values-aligned living.
Your online treatment duration depends entirely on your goals. Whether you're seeking brief, focused work on a specific issue or deeper, longer-term exploration, I adapt the pace and depth to match your needs. The flexibility of online therapy means we can maintain consistency even when you travel between states where I'm licensed.
Making Online ACT Accessible and Effective
One of my strengths lies in translating complex psychological concepts into understandable, applicable insights through virtual delivery. ACT contains profound philosophical ideas, but you don't need a psychology degree to benefit from it. I present information in ways that resonate with how you naturally process information, using screen sharing, digital resources, and interactive online tools when helpful.
I've developed creative ways to facilitate experiential ACT exercises through video sessions. The virtual format means you can practice new skills in your actual living or working environment, whether that's your home in Rhode Island, your office in Maryland, or anywhere else across the states I serve.
Begin Your Online ACT Journey Today
If you're ready to stop fighting with your inner experience and start living more fully, online ACT therapy might be the approach you've been searching for. This isn't about becoming a different person or achieving a state of constant happiness. It's about developing the flexibility to navigate life's challenges while staying connected to what truly matters to you—all from the convenience and privacy of your own space.
As a PSYPACT provider, I'm privileged to serve clients throughout Arizona, Connecticut, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Maryland, Washington DC, Virginia, Colorado, Florida and Illinois. Whether you're in bustling Phoenix, suburban Connecticut, the DC metropolitan area, or anywhere else in these nine states, quality ACT therapy is available to you.
I invite you to reach out to schedule your free online consultation. Together, we can explore whether virtual ACT therapy with me aligns with your needs and goals. You deserve support that honors your complexity, respects your intelligence, and helps you build a life of meaning and purpose—even when that life includes inevitable discomfort and challenge.
Contact me today to learn more about how online Acceptance and Commitment Therapy can support your journey toward psychological flexibility and values-driven living. Let's work together through secure video sessions to help you move from simply functioning to genuinely thriving, in a way that feels authentic and sustainable for you.