Depth-focused psychotherapy for anxiety, trauma, and relationship patterns, drawing on Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP) and somatic approaches.
Joseph Cooper, PhD
You understand your patterns. They still haven’t changed.
PhD · 32 Years in Practice · ISTDP-Trained · Telehealth in DC, VA & NC · $200/Session, Superbill Provided
Resolving the Root of Emotional Distress
Traditional talk therapy often stays at the surface. I work to address the deeper, unconscious drivers of your symptoms
Going Beyond the Surface
You’ve likely read the books, tried the techniques, and may have been in therapy before. You can describe your patterns with real precision. What hasn’t changed is the anxiety that won’t fully quiet, the relationships that keep hitting the same walls, or the tension your body won’t release.
Most therapy focuses on managing what’s difficult: coping strategies, insight, and learning to tolerate distress. That work has value. But for people who are intelligent, driven, and self-aware, it often stops short. Understanding a pattern is not the same as being free of it.
My work focuses on what lies underneath: the emotional conflicts, attachment wounds, and unconscious patterns that keep symptoms in place no matter how much insight you’ve accumulated. Drawing on ISTDP and somatic approaches, I work actively and directly with you to produce change that is deep and lasting.
Over 32 years of clinical practice, I’ve found that the people who benefit most from this work aren’t those who lack self-awareness. They’re the ones who have plenty of it and are tired of it not being enough.
Therapy Services
-
Anxiety that doesn't respond to coping strategies usually has deeper roots — in emotional conflict, learned patterns of self-protection, or unresolved experience the mind keeps circling. Therapy here focuses on what's driving the symptoms, not just managing them.
Learn more about the treatment of anxiety
-
Trauma reshapes how the nervous system works — and talking about it isn't always enough to change that. I use ISTDP and somatic approaches to work with trauma at the level where it actually lives: in the body, in emotion, and in the relational patterns it created.
Learn more about Trauma Treatment
-
Relationship problems tend to repeat because they're driven by attachment patterns formed long before the current relationship. Therapy focuses on understanding those patterns deeply enough to actually change them — not just manage their fallout.
Learn more about Relationship Therapy
-
When pain persists without a clear medical explanation, the nervous system and emotional experience are usually part of the story. Chronic pain therapy explores the psychological and somatic drivers that standard medical treatment doesn't address.
Learn more about Chronic Pain Therapy
-
It is deeply frustrating to know exactly why you are struggling with anxiety, relationship issues, or chronic pain, yet still feel powerless to stop it. True relief happens when we move beyond just talking about the symptoms and safely address the deeper emotional blocks that hold them in place. Learn how ISTDP can help
Fees & Insurance: I am an out-of-network provider. My fee is $200 per session. I can provide a superbill for clients seeking reimbursement through their insurance's out-of-network benefits. Many clients with PPO plans receive partial reimbursement — it's worth checking with your insurer.
Session Length: Sessions are 50 minutes. Longer extended sessions are available for intensive work.
Location: I offer telehealth exclusively, serving adults in Washington, DC, Virginia, and North Carolina. All sessions are conducted via a secure, HIPAA-compliant video platform
Getting Started The first step is a free 15-minute consultation — a chance to talk briefly about what's bringing you to therapy and whether my approach feels like a good fit.
Practice Details
