Personal Approach

I strongly believe that it is the therapist's job to provide the containment, the atmosphere, the ‘tea and empathy' that can help ignite and support the client's healing. While skills and techniques are important, they are nothing without warmth and presence. I advise every would-be client to find a therapist with whom they feel really comfortable.

Calling my practice "Tea and Empathy™" is my way of putting therapy into a context that emphasizes both wellness and the normalcy of human relationship. People reach out to each other in all cultures. In mine, ‘having tea' is a ritual that gives you a chance to stop ‘doing', and to sit down together and connect. Empathy is the therapist's job. It means being present for the client at such a deep level that he or she feels truly heard. When this takes place there is a sense of comfort and safety that makes healing possible. Please pass the tea and let the therapeutic journey begin!

Nicola Ranson, LCSW

Nicola Ranson comes from a wellness perspective, and uses an eclectic clinical approach. She acknowledges Somatic Experiencing® (SE) as a primary theoretical model. SE is a gentle, brief, naturalistic approach based on the nervous system. It is fundamentally empowering, helping people to access their own, instinctive ability to recover from overwhelming experiences.

It is Nicola's belief that the best techniques to use are the ones that will work for the individual client. She may use elements of Gestalt and Drama Therapy, as well as Systems Theory, Cognitive Behavioral methods, or Ericksonian Hypnotherapy. Plus she is enormously grateful to Carl Rogers for defining so much that is fundamental to the therapeutic relationship, and to Irving Yalom for his huge contributions to group psychotherapy, and to acknowledging the role of the heart in clinical practice.