Therapy for stressed out professionals in Santa Rosa
Therapy for men who want to stop living their lives with overwhelm, irritability, or being checked-out with the people they love—without giving up their drive or responsibilities
You just need to manage your stress.
You have a great life, on paper, everyone would say you’ve got it together. But you’re stuck in a rut, it’s like life is on autopilot. You’re always busy, always responsible, but wonder why you feel disconnected.
You’ve got the typical stressed-out stuff, like trouble sleeping, it’s hard to concentrate, you zone out when people are talking to you and find yourself just wanting to isolate.
You find yourself overthinking, worrying, and stressing.
You tell yourself you just need to deal with those few things, and then you can relax.
At the end of the day, you keep thinking about what you need to get done. So, you check your email… again. You rack your mind for the things you might have forgotten.
It gives you a bit of relief when you do them, it feels good to be productive.
But then you realize another night went by without being fully present for your partner who wanted to talk to you, and the only time you spent with your kids was wrangling them through the night-time routine and getting short with them when they act out.
Hardly the quality time you would have hoped for.
There’s just not enough time, but isn’t that the case for everyone?
Finding time for an activity, sport or hobby that you did on a consistent basis just because it was fun is almost laughable to you at this point.
If you weren’t so focused on literally just trying to keep your head above water and not drowning in this harsh world you find yourself in, well maybe then you could think about things like personal fulfillment.
You wonder, is therapy worth it?
Getting back into therapy has been on your to-do list for a while, you know it’s a good thing to do but wonder what you can gain from it beyond just venting about another stressful week.
It’s hard to justify finding an hour a week in your crazy busy schedule just for that.
In-Person Therapy in Santa Rosa
Be present with the people who matter without losing your edge
Angela Sitka, MA, LMFT, licensed psychotherapist specializing in therapy for men
I’m Angela Sitka, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.
I help high-achieving professionals who are tired of living in their heads-overthinking, stressed, and constantly “on,”- learn how to feel more grounded and in control of their lives.
Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), I’ll teach you practical tools to handle stress, step out of mental loops, and start living in alignment with your values, not just your responsibilities and obligations.
You’ve built a great life by being disciplined, dependable, and pushing through.
It’s part of what has helped you succeed. But that same mindset can leave you feeling burned out, disconnected, and wondering, “Why doesn’t this feel better?”
You don’t need to work harder. You need a different way of relating to your thoughts, your stress, and yourself.
How does therapy help me?
Be present with the people who matter without losing your edge
Assess risk levels in trusting others when opening up and being vulnerable.
Identify your feelings and needs. Anticipate and accurately identify your partner’s feelings and needs.
Communicate clearly and feel competent when navigating conflicts, problems, and uncomfortable topics.
Learn how to cope with your relational triggers (for example: your partner’s complaints, crying, clinging, commitment talk, etc.)
Creating Lasting Change: Practice and Get Feedback
My clients often report one of the most helpful aspects of their psychotherapy sessions with me is the specific feedback I provide. I will likely ask you some questions to get you to analyze your words and behaviors from other perspectives or get more insight into the root of your intentions.
There are times when I might point out how your words or behaviors could be perceived by others. I am mindful to be gentle and sensitive when giving feedback, and we discuss how you’d like this to be delivered to you. I might model for you different ways to say things or different approaches to consider.
Overcoming Self-Doubt, Fear, and Insecurities
Most of us have deep-rooted insecurities, fears, and doubts that cause us to react in a manner that feels self-protective. Even when we know what we are doing is not helping the situation, we do it anyway.
Why? Our brains have evolved to be risk-averse and try to keep us from feeling pain and being hurt- both physical and emotional.
Lots of our relational patterns develop in childhood and sometimes traumatic life events such as significant losses, injury, accidents, and past toxic relationships can impact the ways we interact with others.
This is where my background and training in clinical mental health and psychology come in. Some of the tools I teach to clients when difficult thoughts and feelings come up around relationships stem from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). It’s action-oriented, meaning we want to get you moving toward doing and practicing the things that will elicit long-lasting positive change in your life.
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The thing with relationship problems is that they often require us to learn, practice, and develop relationship skills within a relationship.
Therapy is what provides the structure for this type of personal development. A therapeutic relationship (one between a therapist and a client) is the way to get deep, lasting change that you just can’t get from listening to a podcast, reading a book or doing an online program.
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I am a clinically trained and licensed psychotherapist, meaning I have advanced degrees in psychology and clinical mental health. I have completed clinical internships, passed state licensing exams, and been a practicing therapist for over 10 years.
What I provide for my clients is not a cookie-cutter curriculum or scripts of what to say to get what you want. This is much deeper than that. It requires us to look into your personal and unique psychology so you can navigate all kinds of relational situations without relying on rigid rules or tricks.
It’s learning how to do relationships in a way that is authentic to you.
If you’d like to know more about me, check out my about page.
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Yes. I work with men in all stages of life and relationships, including after divorce and breakups, in complicated relationship situations, trying to save a marriage, men who have never been in a relationship or questioning if they want a relationship at all.
Relationship skills also help with business relationships (networking, asserting yourself at work, sales, etc.) building and maintaining friendships and family relationships.
Get Connected with a Therapist specializing in the Independent Man’s Relationship Issues
You’ve already tried fixing it on your own, and if your problems had easy solutions, you would have found them already. If you are ready to get your life back on track and build satisfying relationships, call me for a free 15-minute phone consultation.
My online schedule is available to book at your convenience.
Angela Sitka, LMFT, licensed psychotherapist in Santa Rosa