Colin Pickles, PsyD

Hello and thanks for taking the time to read more about me! I specialize in working with college students and have worked in variety of college counseling centers, both big and small. Within this, I tend to focus on helping students with their anxiety, depression, and relationship concerns, as well as men's issues (e.g. vulnerability, ED, etc.).

Therapy can be, and should be, different for everyone, as there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to counseling. For example, you may prefer highly-structured sessions with clearly-defined goals between appointments, or you might prefer sessions that are mainly exploratory with comparatively less structure. It’s very important to me that you feel comfortable with the style of your sessions, so I aim to collaboratively tailor your sessions in a fashion that best works for you.

There are a few philosophies that guide my work, which may be helpful for you to know. One is that I operate from a strengths-based model and firmly believe that the goal of our work is not just to decrease your level of stress, but also to develop a greater sense of happiness, meaning, and purpose in your life. This means that I’ll be helping you to build on past successes, re-engage with hobbies and relationships you may have pulled away from, and, at times, bringing a playful sense of humor to our conversations.

A second guiding belief of mine is that everyone’s past experiences have led them to develop a set of expectations about how the world works and how others will interact with them. These expectations often serve an adaptive or protective role for us, though they also lead us to developing patterns that inhibit our ability to change. My role is first to help you identify these patterns and assess how they’re working for you, After we’ve done so, I can then help you to develop new skills and strategies to try, as well as to identify ways to intentionally cultivate new experiences.

Finally, I believe that a necessary component of successful counseling is a strong relationship between you and your therapist. This means that you should feel understood and respected on an individual level, able to voice your concerns or provide me with constructive feedback, and willing to be open and honest with me. It also means that I owe it to you to be direct and authentic in our interactions, sensitive and curious about your cultural identities and experiences, receptive to feedback, and to not only listen, but also to offer new insights and perspectives.

If this sounds like a good fit to you, I invite you to give me a call for a free consultation so that we can learn more about one another and so that I can answer any questions you may have. I look forward to speaking with you!