Psychotherapy Santa Cruz

Alan Strachan, Ph.D. (831) 685-3100

I have provided counseling and psychotherapy for individual adults and couples for over 25 years (MFT license #21129).

My style is personal and interactive, and my clients find me understanding, caring and easy to relate to. I create a safe and nurturing environment for you to clarify issues, identify options, and make the changes you desire.

The issues I work with include:

Relationship Difficulties

Relationship issues are the most common topic people wish to explore. I can help you become more direct and authentic in your communication, improve your conflict resolution skills, and develop more demonstrative compassion for yourself and your partner.

Emotional Challenges

I can help you to identify and appropriately express a wider range of feelings, including the more challenging feelings of anger, grief, depression, anxiety, fear, and despair. I have also worked with many adult clients who were abused as children.

Spiritual Concerns

Integrating your spirituality into your daily life is a deeply personal and richly rewarding process. I will work with you to identify your life purpose, to align your behavior with your spiritual values, and to distinguish between your personality issues and an essential knowing of the Self.

Additionally, if you have had harmful exposure to a spiritual community, I can assist you with identifying and resolving the wounds you may have sustained.

Gender Healing

The gender conditioning we receive creates a great deal of pain and misunderstanding. It can affect our self-esteem as well as our relationships. I support clients who wish to move from roles to authenticity, who have experienced a loss of self-control through sexual obsession, and who are challenged by issues of betrayal and abandonment.

Health and Wellness

Emotional, physical and spiritual well-being are all intimately connected. It is very common for psychological issues to appear as physical symptoms, and equally common for physical illness to create emotional distress. I can help you with health-related issues such as substance abuse, coping with chronic illness and stress management.

Alan Strachan, Ph.D.
Psychotherapy Santa Cruz
(831) 685-3100

Educational Background and Licensing

In 1992 I received a Doctorate in Transpersonal Psychology from the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology. I have two Masters degrees, one in Humanistic Psychology and the other in Transpersonal Psychology. I have been a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist since 1985.

Experience

I have been in private practice for over 25 years.

In addition, for 9 years I was the staff psychotherapist for SRI International (formerly the Stanford Research Institute). I offered short-term psychotherapy; designed and presented training programs for staff on topics such as Leadership, Stress Management, Communication and Influence Skills, Substance Abuse in the Workplace, and Career/Life Planning; and provided organizational development (including consultation with management, conflict resolution, and team building).

Specialized Training

I trained for 8 years in Process Work with Arnold Mindell. My doctoral dissertation was based on this training: it was a study of the relationship between childhood dreams and chronic body symptoms that developed in adulthood. I also received specialized training and certification in gender issues from the Satyana Institute.

Spiritual Focus

I have been exploring the interface between psychology and spirituality for over 35 years, both personally and professionally, and I have maintained a meditation practice for nearly 30 years. I am co-founder (along with my wife, Janet Coster) of the Temenos Fellowship of AIWP, a non-profit organization that offers individual and couple's counseling for people on the spiritual path.

Alan Strachan, Ph.D.
Psychotherapy Santa Cruz
(831) 685-3100

Teachings

For 30 years I have made presentations and offered trainings to psychotherapists, organizations and the general public on a wide variety of topics, including:

Touching the Heart of Psychotherapy: Integrating Spirituality and Clinical Practice
Beyond Technique: Making Authentic Contact With Clients
Sexual Obsession and the Loss of Self
Effective Communication Skills
Discovering Your Fundamental Purpose in Life
Reflections on the Spiritual Evolution of Psychotherapy (or, When I was Jung, I was a Freud)
Living a Healthy, Balanced Life in a Stressful World
Counseling and Communication Skills
America on the Couch: Exploring the Intersection of Psychotherapy, Spirituality and Politics

Appointments

For a free phone consultation or to make an appointment, please call me at Psychotherapy Santa Cruz: (831) 685-3100.

Alan Strachan, Ph.D.
Psychotherapy Santa Cruz
(831) 685-3100

Home | My Philosophy | Psychotherapy | My Background | Gender Healing