Therapist for my husband, an adoptee with anxiety
My husband is seeking a therapist somewhere between Oakland and San Rafael. He needs someone who is a very direct and openhearted person. My husband is an adoptee and also has an anxiety disorder and is on the schizoid spectrum. It is really important that he finds someone that has some knowledge of these issues and how they interplay. It's been difficult for him to find a therapist that he feels he can connect with. He already sees a psychiatrist but wants to add a therapist to address other issues. Is there anyone who can recommend someone that provides mindfulness based talk therapy?
Nov 7, 2018
Parent Replies
This isn't exactly what you asked for, but may help get you there.
There's a group called NAMI (National Alliance for the Mentally Ill) with local branches in the East Bay, Contra Costa and Marin. All offer separate support groups for the mentally ill and family members, plus several other resources (help lines, training, etc.). It's a good way to meet people who have walked in your shoes and who can probably offer practical advice and referrals. You yourself might find NAMI a great resource for yourself--trying to help someone you love with mental illness can be taxing and difficult.
I can't offer any particular suggestion on the adoptee issue, but there are a lot of on-line groups who discuss this actively. I've browsed them because my mom is mentally ill and was essentially abandoned by her parents and raised by resentful family members.
However, I think you might do better to steer your husband for the time being towards NAMI resources, because some of the websites I've looked at regarding adoption are pretty contentious and include trolls who insist adoptees can't be loved like birth children--not very helpful to someone already coping with disordered mental and emotional regulation.
It might help your husband to realize that the sense of being raised by people who can't relate to you is pretty common for those with non-standard mental processing, whether they are raised by birth parents or adoptive parents.
http://www.namieastbay.org/
http://www.namicontracosta.org/
http://namimarin.org/
Good luck to you and your husband and god bless your travels.