Mrs. Tammy Bost

LMSW

My approach to therapy comes from a few different therapeutic models. These include, Mindfulness, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Solution-Focused Therapy (SFT). These might mean absolutely nothing to you, so hear me out. I believe that our emotions are the only way our body knows how to communicate with us. By being mindful in our present situation, we allow ourselves space to acknowledge and understand our emotions, which then guides us to our needs. With CBT and Acceptance and Commitment we give ourselves space to understand and accept where these emotions stem from with full compassion and validation. We then get to decide what we want our lives to look like instead. This can include changing our thought patterns, creating new emotional responses, and even altering our behaviors to better align with our authentic self. Solution-Focused Therapy gives us the space to create specialized action steps that align with you and only you, because that's who therapy it for... you.

I grew up without being taught how to recognize or understand my emotions. I learned unhealthy coping skills because I didn't know any better. This resulted in unhealthy coping skills of perfectionism, cleaning obsessively, and allowing fear and anxiety to run my life. I had very little control over myself growing up. I was taught the “right way” and “only way” to do things, I was always told what to do, who to be friends with, to constantly push myself to perfection, and never feel my emotions. I honestly thought my life was great. I was a high achieving kid, growing into a high achieving adult. I graduated high school with high honors and graduated undergrad and graduate school with a dazzling GPA most people strive for. I got a job right out of college and thought my life was on track. However, I quickly felt unfulfilled and lost. I no longer had distractions or goals to work towards. I didn’t know what I liked or how to make myself happy without school or work. I was in a toxic relationship and lost all my friends. I took to unhealthy coping skills of cycling through binge and restrictive eating, overworking myself in the gym, numbing my feelings with drugs and alcohol, and obsessive cleaning. I had no idea how to understand myself and my needs. Then, I found the practice of mindfulness. With this, I began learning how to listen to my thoughts and feelings. I started going to therapy and exploring to understand my authentic self. I began making connections to my thoughts and feelings, and ultimately began recognizing my needs and direction in life. Through processing and trauma therapy, I began healing from my past and creating my future. My inner child became my guide for the person I wanted to be as an adult. I began trusting this information and gained the confidence, through practice, with standing up and advocating for myself. I left my abusive partner, quit my job, and began working towards building my private practice. With all this empowerment, I gained a loving partner that supports me, friends I can trust and build me up, and boundaries within my personal life that allow happiness and confidence to fill my heart and body. I can confidently say now, that I am clean of toxic people and habits. I am able to feel my feelings as they come without shame or judgement, understand my needs from them, and actively take steps to achieve my truest happiness.

Our first session will be us getting a chance to get to know each other. Since we will be working together, this gives you an opportunity to ask any questions you have about the therapy process, practice policies, privacy policies, etc. You may also ask me any questions about myself that may ease your mind and allow yourself to build trust in our therapeutic relationship. This first session will also look like me asking you background questions, so that I may get to know you, how you think, what you feel, how you respond, and what you need. To end the session, we will identify and create therapy goals together. Whether you are coming to therapy for a very specific reason or you are completely unsure, I am here to guide you in any way that best serves you.