Adam Benjamin

Licensed Clinical Social Worker

LCSW, CHT

Old wounds and beliefs about ourselves can "hijack" our lives. Exercising clarity and new practices lets us live more freely and fully.

Client Status

waitlist

Contact

503.481.4067

4829 SE Steele St.

Portland, 97206

2304 E. Burnside Street

Suite 200

Portland, Oregon 97214

At a Glance

Me

Rate: $160-$185

Provides free initial consultation

Provides telehealth services

Practicing Since: 2011

Languages: English

Services

Individual

Insurances Accepted

Out of Pocket
Out of Network
Regence Blue Cross/Blue Shield

My Ideal Client

I work with individual adult clients who may have persistent feelings of "stuckness" or sadness stemming from adverse life events, childhood trauma, attachment wounds, or dysfunctional/mentally ill parents. My practice is inclusive and I work with people of all races, genders, sexual orientations and relationship styles.

My Approach to Helping

My clients develop lasting relief from compelling feelings and self-beliefs that may find their roots in childhood or adverse life events. Living fully means seeing current events clearly, but also developing flexibility in the reactions and expectations we developed long ago. These "old files" are stored in our felt, bodily experience as well as our stories about ourselves. The work of therapy is getting curious together not only about your thoughts and feelings, but also about your sensations and impulses -- the subtle machinery of experience that constitutes (and often limits) your range of choices. I am certified in Hakomi psychotherapy, a kind of mindful & experiential therapy, and have advanced training in resolving attachment wounding. I have a particular interest in working with individuals who grew up with a dysfunctional, immature, or mentally ill parent.

My Personal Beliefs and Interests

Therapy is my calling, but it is not my first career. I also have a PhD in Communication Studies and taught college courses before turning toward psychotherapy. In my spare time I enjoy repairing and riding old motorcycles. I grew up in the New York area and have lived in Portland since 2001.

Techniques I Use

Specialties

Attachment Theory
A thorough grasp of attachment theory is foundational to understand most forms of dysregulation or mental illness. I consider attachment patterns as I seek to tune in to each client's suffering. I also have training in attachment-based therapeutic techniques.
Hakomi
Hakomi is an approach to therapy that brings mindful attention to bodily experiences, and an experiment-based approach to insight and change. I have extensive training in Hakomi and tend to use some of its techniques in most of my sessions. I borrow from Hakomi an attitude of compassionate respect for each client's organic process, and a basic stance of seeking to follow and unfold that process.
Mindfulness-based
'Mindfulness' as used in my training background means 'sustained, non-judgmental attention and self-study.' This kind of mindfulness is not meditation; it is a therapeutic technique applied explicitly to promote insight and relieve distress. Mindful observation of one's feelings, sensations, and reactions, is a part of many therapy sessions, and may be done eyes-open or eyes-closed, as a client's comfort allows.

Issues I Treat

Specialties

Historical Trauma
Central to my approach is to understand the impact of historical or complex trauma, including the vagal and brain systems it often affects, and to help you develop ways to manage its effects on your nervous system.
Loss or Grief
We encounter many forms of grief in our lives. I have conducted bereavement groups for those who have lost loved ones. I am also attuned to the grief that accompanies a lost childhood (for instance, when a parent has major mental illness), or lost innocence (the sense of safety, for instance, that disappears due to abusive or chaotic upbringing).
Self-Esteem
The corrosive effects of poor self-worth, and shame in particular, limit our capacity for flexible thinking and the range of choices we perceive in many situations.
Depression
Depression and anxiety are often situational, but just as often they are rooted in a core experience of ourselves that has persisted a long time, and resists any efforts to think our way clear of them. The mindful and experiential techniques I utilize allow access to the deep, core experiences and beliefs that need to be changed so that we can feel different and live with renewed energy.
Men's Issues
I have a particular interest in working with men to overcome the legacy of toxic masculinity and the persistent burden of shame that it engenders.

Adam Benjamin has not posted any group sessions.
Adam Benjamin has not published any articles.

Contact Adam

Name

Phone Number

Services

Payment

Message

Optional note (300 character limit). Please do not include sensitive medical information.