Meet Jennifer Dean of Woodland Hills Therapy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Dean.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I have always been interested in the human experience, and spent my early life as a filmmaker and documentarian. Along with trying to understand other people, I have spent decades trying to understand my own behavior, and how my own early childhood challenges have impacted me. This led me back to school, earning a Master’s and doctorate degrees in Clinical social work and psychoanalytic psychotherapy. I love the process of working with individuals and couples, to better understand what leads them towards the choices they make, and how those choices impact their relationships. My goal is to help people feel more connected with others and with themselves.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I wrote my dissertation on the link between childhood sexual abuse and commercial sexual exploitation, and the research for this project and the years I spent working with this population was challenging. So many women (and some men) have experienced such a myriad of traumatic situations that even bearing witness to these traumas can leave a lasting impact on the therapist. Some of the challenges with that work were understanding that you cannot help everyone, no matter how much you try. Dealing with the reality of this can be heartbreaking for a therapist, and we must do our own work to confront some of the inadequacies we experience when this happens.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
As a doctor of clinical social work, my goal is to understand individuals in the context of the environment they were raised in. This includes historical trauma, societal traumas, and family trauma and expectations. Working with people who are suffering from anxiety, relational issues, or just a sense of not fully understanding the choices they are making in life is what I specialize in. I believe in a relational dynamic between my clients and myself, where together we try to better understand the motivations for certain behaviors, while having compassion for some of the barriers that have been erected for self-protection.

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I believe it is essential to take risks in order to grow, however taking risks can often feel impossible for many people. Having a deeper understanding of the fear that is shaping your belief system can help clients overcome the hurdles of risk taking, and allow them to tolerate the extremely uncomfortable feelings that might show up when you choose to do something outside of your comfort zone.

Pricing:

• $230 Individual sessions
• $250 Couples sessions

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.woodlandhillstherapy.net