top of page
FAQ
Getting Started
I primarily work with men and teenage boys (age 13 and up) who want practical, straightforward help with the problems they’re facing. I also see couples especially when the husband or boyfriend would prefer working with a male therapist.
You can get started by calling my office or reaching out through the contact form on this website. I typically offer a brief phone consultation so we can talk about what you’re looking for, answer questions, and decide whether we’re a good fit before scheduling your first session.
My office is in Charleston, South Carolina, and I see clients in person there. All my sessions are generally in-person, so potential clients must be within driving distance to Charleston. I have had clients drive from Columbia, Myrtle Beach, and Beaufort to work with me because they felt that I was the best fit for them as a counselor despite the distance.
My Approach to Therapy
I specialize in Solution‑Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), a practical, goal‑oriented approach that focuses on what you want to change and what’s already working, rather than spending too much time focused the past. Most clients come to see me because they want concrete change and don’t want to be in therapy forever.
It depends on the person and the situation, but I typically see clients for an average of 4–8 initial sessions. Some people feel they’ve gotten what they need in fewer sessions, and others choose to continue longer. We’ll decide together based on your goals what’s most helpful. After the initial sessions, we will transition into “as needed” sessions. In that capacity, I have worked with some clients for many years.
My sense of humor is a big part of my counseling style, especially when I’m working with guys who are nervous or skeptical about therapy. I take your situation seriously, but I also know that a little humor can make it easier to talk about difficult things and stay engaged in the work we’re doing.
Absolutely. A lot of my clients are new to therapy or unsure whether counseling will actually help. We can talk openly about your doubts, keep things straightforward and practical, and focus on specific changes you’d actually like to see in your life.
I’m more of a “fixer” than a “talker,” and I’ve found this approach works best with guys. Focusing my practice this way allows me to really understand the kinds of struggles guys face and to tailor my style, examples, and interventions specifically to them. I’m also comfortable talking about topics that many men find awkward or embarrassing, which makes it easier for them to be honest and actually get something useful out of counseling.
Frequent Issues
I often help clients with anxiety, stress, anger management, depression, porn addiction, compulsive sexual behaviors, relationship and family issues, and life transitions. I also work with concerns, like low self‑esteem, poor decision‑making, self‑sabotage, and feeling stuck or not living up to your potential.
Yes. In addition to counseling, I offer life coaching for adolescents and adults who want to make changes in their lives but aren’t sure where to start. Life coaching can be a good fit if you’re focused on goals, performance, or specific decisions rather than traditional mental health symptoms.
Most of my practice is individual therapy for guys, but I also work with couples, especially when the husband or boyfriend would prefer a male therapist. We focus on clear communication, problem‑solving, and practical steps you can use outside of sessions.
Counseling for Teenage Boys
Yes. I counsel teenage boys age 13 and up on a wide range of issues, and I genuinely enjoy the challenge of working with adolescents who may be initially resistant to the idea of therapy. I generally treat my teenage clients like young adults, so a certain level of maturity is necessary for the counseling process to be effective.
Frequent topics include defiance, disrespect, and family conflict; academic struggles; alcohol and drug use; student‑athlete stress and high school sports pressure; legal issues; father‑son relationship problems; lying and dishonesty; inappropriate sexual behavior; low self‑esteem; irresponsibility and poor decision‑making; and self‑sabotage or unfulfilled potential. I often work with boys who tend to “bottle things up” and avoid talking about difficult emotions. I help them push through that discomfort so they can address the issues that are troubling them.
Yes. I often work with teenage boys who are skeptical about therapy or don’t really want to be here at first. It’s often said that “girls discuss while boys distract,” meaning boys are more likely to avoid dealing with and discussing difficult topics. I focus on building enough trust and rapport that they feel safe opening up to therapy seriously. That said, we need to be realistic about the process. If your son is totally opposed to the idea of counseling/coaching, it will be a waste of their time and your money to force the process on him. I’m always glad to meet with a teenager to determine if there’s any potential for us to work together.
I’m involved in local mental health organizations that support teenagers and have given presentations at local high schools. Earlier in my career I worked with college students at the Counseling Center for the College of Charleston, have been a guest speaker for MUSC’s Adolescent Substance Use Skills Education and Training (ASSET) program, and I have represented teenagers in court as a Guardian ad Litem for Charleston County.
Because privacy and trust are critical to success in therapy, I ask parents to waive their right to view specific details of their child’s treatment record. I provide parents with general information about their child’s progress and participation in therapy, as well as attendance at scheduled sessions. But I generally keep the content of sessions confidential so the teenager can be honest and engaged in the process.
Pornography Use and Compulsive Sexual Behavior
Yes. I see men and teenage boys dealing with a wide range of issues, but concerns about pornography use and other compulsive sexual behaviors have become a significant part of my practice. I didn’t set out to become the “porn therapist” in Charleston, but over time I’ve learned how to address this awkward topic in a direct, straightforward way that makes it easier to talk about.
Many of the guys I work with come in for other reasons such as anxiety, depression, relationship issues, or school and work stress. During the course of my standard intake, we often discover that porn use has become a concern or is making other problems worse. I routinely screen all clients—regardless of why they initially come to see me—about their pornography use, which has led to some important and honest conversations.
I started my counseling career just as smartphones became commonplace. Porn has been around forever, but smartphones were a complete game‑changer because they made explicit content instantly available, anonymous, and portable. For teenage boys who are going through puberty and developing a normal curiosity about sex, internet pornography can sometimes hijack the process of typical, healthy sexual exploration and set up patterns that are hard to change later.
Although “porn addiction” is not yet an official diagnosis in standard psychological manuals, the pattern is very real in people’s lives. I’ve worked with hundreds of adults and teenagers who have struggled to moderate or eliminate their pornography use. The pattern has many of the same hallmarks as addictions to alcohol and drugs: cravings and difficulty limiting use, continued use despite negative consequences, increasing tolerance, negative impact on school or work performance, and strain on relationships.
One challenge with pornography is that there are no clearly established benchmarks for what is “normal” or “acceptable,” like there are for alcohol or substances. Instead, we look at the impact on your life:
• Are you trying to cut back but can’t?
• Is it affecting your mood, motivation, school or job performance, or relationships?
• Is it changing the way you see yourself or other people?
If the honest answers to those questions concern you, it’s worth talking about.
Over the years, I’ve developed a practical, effective protocol for working with teenagers and adults who want to eliminate or significantly reduce their porn use. We focus on understanding your specific patterns, identifying triggers, developing alternative coping strategies, and creating realistic limits or goals. One of the keys is stripping away the secrecy and anonymity of the behavior and building honest accountability into our sessions.
In my experience, this approach is generally effective, especially when the client is motivated to make a change and willing to be honest in our work together. I’ve seen many men and teenage boys move from feeling ashamed and stuck to feeling more in control, more connected to their values, and more hopeful about their relationships and future.
Because of my extensive experience treating pornography use and compulsive sexual behavior, I’ve been invited to speak about porn addiction at the annual Lowcountry Mental Health Conference. I’ve also presented on this topic to the South Carolina Society for Clinical Social Workers and at various continuing education programs for psychotherapists.
Business Partnership Counseling
Business partnership counseling is essentially the business equivalent of marital counseling. It focuses on helping business partners communicate more clearly, understand the issues getting in their way, and decide how they want to move forward together. Instead of fixing spreadsheets or org charts, the work is about the relationship between the partners and how they handle conflict, decisions, and differences in style.
I work with business partners who are rubbing each other the wrong way, arguing over the future of the business, or feeling stuck in recurring conflicts they can’t resolve on their own. Common themes include feeling unheard or disrespected, clashing leadership styles, disagreements about long‑term strategy, and tension that’s starting to affect employees or the health of the company. Sometimes it looks a lot like an unhappy marriage, just in a business setting.
Traditional business consultants usually focus on systems, procedures, or management techniques. Business partnership counseling focuses on the relationship between the partners themselves: how you talk to each other, how you handle disagreement, how you make decisions, and how you repair trust when it’s been strained. We may certainly talk about strategy and roles, but the primary goal is to help the two of you work together more effectively and with less resentment.
Not always—and that’s not always the right goal. In some cases, counseling helps partners strengthen an already good relationship and “nip problems in the bud” before they damage the business. In other cases, it helps partners realize they want different things and need to restructure or end the partnership. Even when the outcome is separation, having a structured, guided process can reduce drama, protect the business as much as possible, and help both people carry forward better communication habits.
This work is a good fit for co‑founders, small business owners, professional partners (such as in law, real estate, or medical practices), and family‑owned businesses where relationships and ownership are deeply intertwined. It’s especially useful if you’re spending many hours a day together, know something isn’t working, and are open to talking honestly about your styles, values, and expectations—even if those conversations are uncomfortable at first.
Logistics, Privacy, and Practical Details
I run my practice as efficiently as possible so we can make the best use of our time together. All scheduling, intake forms, notes, and billing are handled online through a secure client portal.
Confidentiality is central to the work I do. With adults, what we discuss in session stays between us except in the rare situations required by law or ethical guidelines. With teens, I encourage appropriate parent involvement while still protecting enough privacy that the teens feel safe being honest in therapy.
That’s okay. You don’t have to be sure before reaching out. We can talk briefly about what you’re looking for, what I offer, and whether it seems like a good match. If I’m not the right fit, I’m happy to point you in a more helpful direction when I can.
bottom of page