Adult Psychological Services

Initial Appointment

Norford Psychological Associates provides therapy to adults of all ages. The initial evaluation provides an opportunity for you and the therapist to meet each other and to start the process of discussing the issues of concern to you. The therapist will talk with you about your background, family, and current day life in order to get a comprehensive understanding of the difficulties for which you are seeking support. By the end of the initial appointment there should be direction and planning for how therapy can be of benefit to you. You should have a good sense when you leave the first session that your therapist can help you. Ongoing therapy sessions are typically scheduled once a week or once every other week in the early months. Often this changes to an "as needed" basis of less frequency as improvement is achieved. Our goal is to help all adults who meet with us to develop effective coping skills, and to reclaim their happiness and sense of fulfillment.

Young Adults

Some of the most common reasons for young adults to seek psychological services include relationship issues, problems with job/career, stress from college, anger, and problems with substance use. This is also a time that young adults often struggle with psychological issues such as depression, anxiety, and ADD. Sleep, family relationships, studying, romantic relationships, and judgment can all be adversely affected. Despite many positives, young adults sometimes report this as being the period of feeling the most in crisis in their lives. It is not uncommon for parents in out-of-state locales to contact us about seeing their children who are attending college locally.

Adults

Adults cope daily with a wide range of internal and environmental stressors and most of the time are capable of doing so. However, sometimes the stressors become too overwhelming or may be worsened by a health or work crisis leading to psychological strain beyond what may be manageable without additional support. Distressing situations with children, aging parents, or marital problems are often a contributing factor. Loneliness, lack of social support, family conflict, anxiety, and sleep problems are common symptoms resulting from the above issues. Many adults seek therapy to hear an objective, supportive, trained voice and to develop strategies for overcoming the distressing issues. Some people attend just a few sessions and some with long-standing emotional or personal issues continue to work with a psychologist for an extended time.

Senior Adults

Norford Psychological Associates is an approved Medicare Provider. We work with adults who are newly retired as well as those in their 80’s and 90’s. Older adults receive therapy for a wide range of issues including coping with the change that retirement brings, anxiety, significant health issues, marital concerns, loss of a spouse, and loneliness. Meeting with a psychologist is often a new experience for senior adults. However, they often report appreciation for the opportunity to talk over their concerns and to gather additional perspective.

Couples/Marital

Couples/Marital counseling is one of the most common reasons people seek therapy and one of the most challenging to treat. Each partner brings a unique history with finances, relatives, intimacy, etc., into the relationship. The marriage can then face further challenges of child-rearing, health concerns, work-life balance and/or concerns about infidelity. Often communication and closeness break down and everyday interactions become painful. Providing a safe and objective setting for partners to talk with each other with careful therapeutic intervention is essential for good progress in therapy. At times much can be gained in just a few sessions and for others the work is more involved. Therapeutic goals include healthy communication, transcending the past, respect for the needs of involved children, and determining best choices for the future.

Parenting

Parents with children of all ages seek therapy from us for difficult matters regarding their children. Many times parents are looking for reassurance as to whether or not their child’s behavior is within the normal range and will improve all on its own. For parents of very young children there are often concerns about eating, sleeping, separation anxiety, and managing tantrums. Parents of school age children seek a wide variety of services for behavioral, emotional, and educational concerns outlined in the Child and Adolescent section. Addressing substance use, school failure, and violation of house rules are frequent concerns. Middle-age and older adults sometimes face stressful issues of troubling romantic relationships of their children and multigenerational conflicts involving their children and grandchildren. See Child & Adolescent Services for much more detail on our services for parents/families/children.