Dr. Stephen Sabin PSYD
stephen sabin

Psychoanalysis has a branding problem. When people think of it, they typically imagine a turn-of-the-century Freudian-type psychoanalyst with a couch in the middle of a Victorian room. Or, perhaps the classic New Yorker cartoon.

That was over 100 years ago. Today, there’s been a reimaging of what psychoanalysis looks like, based on extensive research, conversations with patients and intense peer debate. Just as we don’t drive the Model T anymore, we don’t practice “that” kind of psychoanalysis anymore.

Now, instead of the hierarchical relationship consisting of a “patient” with a symptom and an “analyst” with an interpretation, it’s a two-way conversation between two people with their own perspectives and idiosyncrasies. It’s this flow of conversation and relationship that brings about fertile ideas. This is where the magic and the meaning live.

When we begin a journey together, we play together, we dream together, we embrace the uncertainty together. Together, we create a space for insights to emerge. The process is more alive, there’s more empathy, curiosity and collaboration.

And because of this, the patterns become more evident. The inner discoveries are more profound, and the process—while still work— is far more accessible and enlightening for patients.

For the last 18 years, I’ve been cultivating a highly collaborative and relational approach. By carefully and thoughtfully examining your life—your hopes, dreads, fears and desires—we develop a practice, a discipline that will help you continue to grow for the long haul.

Sometimes it helps people to think of me as an interior designer of the self. Little by little, day after day, session upon session, we clear out what needs to go, rearrange what you want to keep and reimagine your space with new thoughts, behaviors, patterns, energy and possibilities you want to see. We make your inner world a place you want to spend more time in—a place that truly feels like home.

My ultimate goal is to help you identify what you need in your life to live a more vital, robust and truthful existence.