Marianne Herzog, PhD
Licensed Psychologist
484-393-5886

Finding your path to living with more ease
I am so happy that you arrived here today! I hope that we can meet and begin to work together to address the concerns that have brought you here.
Whether you are experiencing anxiety, depression, difficulty sleeping, relationship conflicts, problems at work, or overall stress, or are seeking further knowledge or a new perspective on relating to the children in your care, you are probably noticing the usual ways of handling things are not working. Knowing that you are reading this, I can see that you have already taken the first step toward finding more effective ways of coping with the struggles you are facing. Be sure to notice and acknowledge the wisdom you have shown in considering seeking help with these, which is not an easy step for many reasons!
The following are opportunities for increasing your self-knowledge, bringing more focus and less stress into your life and finding relief from emotional distress. If you are teaching or parenting, my workshops provide an enhanced understanding of early child development and a clearer awareness of how the ways you respond and relate with the children in your care affects their development.
Mindfulness
My personal and professional experience with the practice of mindfulness over the last 15 years inspires me to include mindful approaches in all of my work with others, and to teach introduction to mindfulness classes.
​
In practicing mindfulness, we develop our capacity to relate in a different way to the troubles we face in life and to our thoughts that prolong, intensify, and even create variations on our difficulties to cause more suffering.
​
Through practice of mindfulness, our troubles don't magically disappear, but we become less reactive to our thoughts, so they have less power to create painful emotions and impulsive behaviors.
​
There is freedom in learning to move from our habitual and narrow focus, to an awareness of all that is happening in a particular situation, and to the wider range of choices for what to focus our attention on and what actions we can take.
​
Join an Introduction to Mindfulness Practice series, or schedule individual sessions to learn how to bring mindfulness into your life. Introduction to Mindfulness Practice classes and Guided mindfulness meditation sessions can also be scheduled for your group or work place.
Psychotherapy
A psychological perspective brings self-knowledge, which helps us become more conscious about our thoughts, feelings and behavior and how these affect each other, and helps us to understand and relate to other people effectively. We can use the insights gained from engaging in psychotherapy and in self-reflection (both in and out of therapy), to find relief from depression, anxiety, worry, and emotional and physical pain, feel more at ease with ourselves and others, enjoy life as fully as possible, and bring conscious intention into our efforts to make meaningful contributions in the world.
​
When I work with you in therapy, I think of us as partners in coming to a fuller understanding of you, your experiences, and your concerns. I listen carefully so that I can empathize with the difficulties you are struggling with and hear your perspective and your knowledge and feelings about these and how you want things to change.
In our work together, I bring my educational and professional background, my study and understanding of research, and my own knowledge and experience about the most effective ways to approach therapeutic change and healing. The specific observations, insights, suggestions, and recommendations I offer during therapy, arise from this knowledge base integrated with an understanding of you and your unique perspective and needs.
We move forward together, to develop the best plan and strategies to address your concerns.
Parenting/Teaching
Being with children in a way that facilitates and nurtures their development is an often rewarding, sometimes challenging, and a most definitely important role. Understanding the particular issues related to child development is only part of what is needed. Something that is not always realized is how crucial the quality of your relationship with a child is to their social and emotional development and growing sense of self and ability to relate to others.
In my more than 20 years' experience working with the families and educational staff in head start programs, I developed specific training sessions to address a wide range of topics in child development and emotional and behavioral difficulties. I also taught caregivers how to maintain their own overall wellness.
An important focus of my teaching is on developing the skills necessary to become aware of the many thoughts and feelings you are experiencing, as the caregiver, in your interactions with children, the effect of these on the interaction and on the child, and how these factors are influencing your ability to be a positive influence in those moments.
My parents and teachers groups provide you with the tools for self-care to cope with the stress of your many roles so that you, too, can thrive and so that you are bringing your best to your interactions with the young children in your care. Through didactic and experiential learning, you will develop the skills to provide the qualities of presence, connection, and responsiveness in being with children that are so necessary to their development.
We will work together to find solutions and bring more balance and pleasure into your life