Mindfulness Centered Psychotherapy

Specialties

Do you find yourself getting stuck in old thoughts and feelings that create challenges in your relationships or career? Would you like to feel present clear and peaceful? Rather than just talking about problems I can help you connect with the issues viscerally. I practice Mindfulness Centered Psychotherapy to help people feel more comfortable in their own skin and empowered in their lives. I do Individual therapy, Relationship Counseling, and Group Counseling in Berkeley. For an example of what a session with me might look like go to the my approach section of my website and see the article called, «An Example of My Work».

I believe effective therapy helps people feel more expansive in their relationships, including primary relationships with a significant other, their friendships, and with co-​workers, etc. Group therapy for men can be a helpful adjunct to relationship counseling because it empowers men to get more connected to their authentic self. This authenticity can bring more awareness to help them to decide inside what choices feel right for them. See my website for info about my men’s group.

My style is direct, interactive, respectful, and collaborative. Together, we enter into a state of consciousness called mindfulness which helps increase awareness of present moment experience without judgement or effort. In this state you can notice, at a deeper level, the beliefs that influence how you show up in the world and how this is expressed through your body.

History

Established in 2003.

Business established in 2003, by Ivan Skolnikoff, MFT.

With an MA in counseling psychology from the University of San Francisco in 1993, and an MFT License in 1999, I have been engaged in psychotherapy with clients for over 20 years.

My early training, as a therapist, focused on more traditional therapy approaches including; Psychodynamic, and CBT.

In 2004, I became trained in an approach called EMDR Therapy. Adding EMDR counseling to my toolkit was extremely helpful for many of my clients facing anxiety and trauma issues. What also seemed helpful to my clients facing a variety of issues was the training I received in Mindfulness Therapy; which was grounded in somatic awareness. This additional somatic therapy training intuitively made sense because our bodies hold a lot of data that our busy minds may easily overlook. I believe that Mindfulness-​Based approaches are effective because by working with experience we can access deeper parts of the brain where experiences are stored.

Meet the Business Owner

Ivan S.

Business Owner

My therapy style is eclectic. Some of the theories and tools I draw from include Psychodynamic, Mindfulness practices, Hakomi Body-​Oriented Psychotherapy, Internal Family Systems, CBT, EMDR, and Emotional Freedom Technique to name a few. I have found that although theories are useful tools for working with clients, rather than trying to make a person fit into a theory, my priority is understanding what you, as an individual, bring into our sessions.

My approach to problems is strength-​based, meaning that I pay as much attention to what makes you feel grounded and resourced as the problems that overwhelm you. In addition to the issues mentioned below I have specialized in areas including trauma, sexual compulsion, chronic illness, grief and loss, addictions, pain management to name a few. I also work with clients interested in relationship issues, depression and anxiety, childhood abuse and neglect, career issues, and self empowerment issues.