young adults
Nobody really prepares you for this part
You're done with high school, maybe done with college — and somehow adulthood feels nothing like you expected. There's pressure to have it figured out, to be building something, to feel more settled than you do.
Maybe you're in college and struggling more than you thought you would. Maybe you graduated and the path forward isn't as clear as everyone else seems to think it should be. Maybe your relationships feel complicated, your sense of self feels shaky, or you're just carrying a low-level anxiety that never quite goes away.
You're not behind. You're not broken. This stage of life is genuinely hard — and you don't have to navigate it alone.
What often brings young adults to therapy
Young adulthood comes with a specific kind of pressure that doesn't get talked about enough. Some of what I commonly see:
College stress, burnout, or feeling like you're drowning academically
The identity shift that comes after graduation — who am I without a built-in structure?
Career anxiety — choosing a path, changing direction, or feeling stuck
Relationship patterns that keep repeating — in friendships, dating, or family
Anxiety or depression that followed you from high school and never really resolved
Feeling behind compared to peers or like everyone else has it more together
People-pleasing, difficulty with boundaries, or losing yourself in relationships
Processing childhood or family experiences that are showing up in your adult life
Just feeling off — disconnected, flat, or not quite like yourself
The post-grad no one talks about
There's a specific kind of disorientation that happens after a major life transition — graduation, a breakup, moving somewhere new, leaving a job. The structure disappears and suddenly you're left with yourself in a way that can feel uncomfortable or even frightening.
A lot of young adults describe it as feeling unmoored. Like everyone else got a manual and you missed the meeting.
Therapy is a space to slow down, figure out what's actually going on underneath, and start building a life that actually feels like yours — not the one you thought you were supposed to want.
Relationships & dating
This is one of the most common things young adults bring to therapy — and one of the most meaningful to work on. The patterns we develop in relationships don't come out of nowhere. They come from what we learned about love, safety, and connection growing up.
Some of what we might explore:
Why you keep attracting the same kind of person
Anxiety in relationships — fear of abandonment, rejection, or conflict
Difficulty communicating needs without guilt or shutting down
People-pleasing and losing yourself in relationships
Recovering from a painful breakup or situationship
Building healthier patterns before they become entrenched
How I work with young adults
My approach with young adults is collaborative and real. I'm not going to sit quietly and nod — I'm going to be genuinely present with you, offer perspective when it's helpful, and follow your lead on what matters most.
I use approaches rooted in ACT, CBT, and DBT, and I weave psychoeducation throughout so you actually understand what's happening inside you — not just get told what to do about it. If EMDR feels relevant to what you're carrying, we can explore that too.
What we can work on together
Understanding the patterns that are keeping you stuck
Building a stronger, more stable sense of who you are
Navigating major life transitions without losing yourself
Developing tools for anxiety, low mood, or emotional overwhelm
Setting boundaries and communicating your needs — without guilt
Processing the past so it stops running your present
Building a life that actually feels like yours
You don't have to have it all figured out to start
A lot of young adults wait until things get really bad before reaching out. You don't have to. If something feels off, that's enough of a reason.
I offer free 15-minute consultation calls for all new clients — a low-pressure conversation to talk about where you are and whether working together feels right.
No commitment required. Just a conversation.
Book a Free Consultation →