Holly Jurca Psychotherapy

I view therapy as a collaborative, active process of exploration. At the start, we may talk about your hopes and desires for your life. We may explore what you feel holds you back, what you can’t seem to let go of, traumas from the past and present, anxieties of the future. The topic and direction depend entirely on what you find vital. Sometimes that may remain uncertain or unknown to us during the work. I believe that - with support and a safe enough space to be with that unknown - a direction, path, and sense for the work eventually materializes. Importantly, we go by your pace and timing.

I practice integratively, with an emphasis on the psychodynamic theoretical approach. This means that I pay and bring attention to the unconscious, the unspoken, and will always remain curious about our relationship together. I hold space for the alchemy, or co-created energy, between us and how that might relate to you. This exploration can be facilitated through parts work, creative approaches with music/art, relational work, somatic awareness, trauma-informed mindfulness, narrative work, and perhaps even a method we cultivate collaboratively. I always welcome you to bring in thoughts on how best to explore what is coming up for you.

I am an anti-oppressive therapist. This means I think wider than the ‘individual’ - about sociopolitical systems and realities that continue to shape the emotional world. I work with the understanding that - your past, formative relationships, social, cultural, economic, political, historical particulars - meet in confluence in the present. I work to stay educated on inclusive, anti-oppressive practices both personally and professionally. I especially resonate with the work of the feminist killjoy.

Part of the therapeutic process is working with the relationship between us. I aim to remain accountable, transparent, and attuned to our relationship. It is important to me to stay aware of the power dynamics that exist in the asymmetrical relationship of therapist and client. Part of how I practice in a justice-oriented way is by recognizing my positionality as therapist. Where therapeutically indicated, I bring observations about our relationship into the room with honesty and care.

A powerful aspect of therapy can be in the moments where the therapist might not catch a moment of misalignment or misattunement - where you as client feel I may not have gotten it quite right. Perhaps a limit or boundary I held felt uncomfortable or insensitive, or something is named that felt verbalized too soon. Part of the work of therapy is addressing the dynamics that happen within relationship. As a therapist, I aim to stay as attuned and aware as possible. I am also human and will inevitably miss certain moments where a rupture may have happened. These moments of rupture can be generative if moved toward together.

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A rupture in the therapeutic relationship between therapist and client can be a generative space when looked at collaboratively with curiosity and openness. This might shed light on past relational experiences and patterns and can start the process of understanding what might be happening internally. When attended to in a curious, welcoming manner within a safe enough environment, this can facilitate a corrective emotional experience. Over time of feeling safe enough to bring difficult emotions within relationship - upsets, hurts, anger - it can become possible to slowly shift these ways of relating.