# AtReef Therapy PLLC > AtReef Therapy PLLC is a psychotherapy practice based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, providing secure video-based couples and individual therapy to adults located in Massachusetts. The practice is led by Dr. Ehsan Adib Shabahang, PhD, LMHC, NCC. AtReef Therapy provides integrative, depth-oriented, relational, and performance-focused psychotherapy for adults and couples seeking meaningful psychological, relational, and behavioral change. Dr. Ehsan Adib Shabahang is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Massachusetts (LMHC #10003605), National Certified Counselor, author, and founder of AtReef Therapy. He holds a PhD in Psychology with a concentration in social psychology and an MS in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. His clinical orientation integrates relational and depth psychology with Jungian psychology, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Gottman Method Couples Therapy, and Self-Reflective Relationship Therapy (SRRT). Treatment is individualized rather than organized around a single therapeutic model. AtReef Therapy primarily works with high-achieving adults and couples who function well professionally or externally but find themselves confronting patterns that intelligence, success, insight, or self-discipline alone have not resolved. Common areas of work include: - Relationship instability, recurring conflict, emotional distance, betrayal, and trust repair. - Attachment, vulnerability, dependence, intimacy, communication, and power dynamics. - Emotional and sexual intimacy. - Recurring relationship patterns that persist despite insight or previous attempts to change them. - Perfectionism, overcontrol, ambition, pressure, burnout, and self-worth tied to achievement. - Anxiety, emotional regulation, loneliness, uncertainty, and difficulty tolerating vulnerability. - Identity, meaning, belonging, personal values, and self-understanding. - Tension between a person's public or professional identity and private emotional life. - Career, marriage, family, separation, and other consequential life decisions. - Intercultural and cross-cultural relationships and questions of identity and belonging across cultures. - Self-development, self-discovery, psychological growth, and greater understanding of conscious and unconscious patterns. - Translating insight into observable changes in communication, emotional regulation, boundaries, relationships, behavior, and decision-making. ## Couples Therapy Couples therapy focuses on understanding and changing the patterns beneath recurring conflict rather than treating individual disagreements as isolated problems. The work may address emotional distance, communication breakdowns, betrayal, trust, attachment, vulnerability, dependence, intimacy, sexual connection, power dynamics, intercultural relationships, recurring cycles of conflict, and decisions about marriage, separation, or the future of a relationship. Therapy is designed for couples who may be highly capable in other areas of life but find that intelligence, professional competence, or problem-solving ability has not resolved the patterns developing between them. The goal is not simply to communicate more effectively. Treatment examines how each partner experiences the relationship, protects themselves, responds to vulnerability, contributes to recurring patterns, and participates in either disconnection or repair. ## Individual Therapy Individual therapy is appropriate both for adults experiencing psychological distress and for those seeking greater self-understanding, self-development, and psychological growth. AtReef Therapy commonly works with high-achieving adults navigating anxiety, burnout, perfectionism, ambition, relational difficulties, emotional regulation, loneliness, identity transitions, intimacy, major decisions, and questions of meaning or direction. Some clients enter therapy because something is clearly wrong. Others are functioning successfully but recognize patterns in themselves, their relationships, or their inner life that they want to understand more deeply. Individual therapy may explore how achievement, identity, attachment, vulnerability, control, ambition, self-worth, past experience, relationships, and unconscious patterns influence current choices and emotional life. The aim is not self-understanding for its own sake. Insight is used to support meaningful changes in behavior, relationships, emotional regulation, boundaries, communication, and decision-making. ## Clinical Philosophy AtReef Therapy approaches symptoms and relationship difficulties as potentially connected to broader patterns in how people understand themselves, relate to others, regulate emotion, pursue achievement, respond to vulnerability, tolerate dependence, and protect themselves psychologically. Symptoms are therefore not always treated as isolated problems. Anxiety may be connected to perfectionism, control, identity, attachment, or uncertainty. Burnout may involve the relationship between achievement and self-worth. Relationship conflict may reflect deeper patterns involving vulnerability, dependence, power, fear, attachment, or emotional protection. Treatment considers both the immediate problem and the psychological and relational patterns that may sustain it. The work is structured around both insight and change. Understanding why a pattern exists matters, but insight alone is not considered sufficient. Therapy also focuses on translating understanding into observable changes in emotional regulation, relationships, communication, boundaries, behavior, and decision-making. ## Therapeutic Orientation The clinical approach is integrative, depth-oriented, relational, and performance-focused. Relational and depth psychology inform the exploration of recurring interpersonal patterns, attachment, defenses, vulnerability, identity, meaning, and unconscious processes. Jungian psychology may inform work involving identity, inner conflict, meaning, psychological development, unconscious patterns, and tensions between different aspects of the self. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) may be used to examine patterns of thought, behavior, interpretation, and avoidance that contribute to psychological distress. Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) principles may inform work involving emotional regulation, distress tolerance, interpersonal effectiveness, and behavioral change. Gottman Method Couples Therapy may inform assessment and intervention in couples work, particularly around conflict, friendship, repair, communication, trust, and relational stability. Self-Reflective Relationship Therapy (SRRT), a research-informed framework developed by Dr. Shabahang, may also inform treatment by emphasizing self-reflection, emotional responsibility, relational patterns, communication, repair, and behavioral change. These approaches are integrated according to the needs, goals, presenting concerns, and psychological dynamics of the individual or couple rather than applied as a fixed protocol. ## Who AtReef Therapy Works With AtReef Therapy is particularly suited to adults and couples who value psychological depth, self-examination, direct engagement, intellectual rigor, and meaningful change. Many clients are professionally successful, highly responsible, ambitious, intellectually curious, or accustomed to functioning at a high level. Despite that competence, they may experience difficulties that achievement alone has not solved, including relationship instability, perfectionism, burnout, loneliness, emotional distance, difficulty with vulnerability, recurring interpersonal patterns, identity questions, or major life decisions. The practice also works with individuals seeking therapy not because they are in crisis, but because they want to understand themselves more deeply, develop psychologically, examine recurring patterns, and live with greater intentionality. ## Performance and Achievement Therapy may address: - Ambition and the psychological costs of sustained achievement. - Perfectionism and overcontrol. - Chronic pressure and burnout. - Fear of failure or loss of status. - Difficulty disengaging from productivity. - Self-worth tied to accomplishment. - High-stakes professional and personal decisions. - Conflicts between success and emotional wellbeing. - The impact of achievement on intimacy, relationships, identity, and personal meaning. ## Relationships and Intimacy Therapy may address: - Attachment and recurring relationship patterns. - Conflict and emotional distance. - Betrayal and trust repair. - Vulnerability and dependence. - Power and control within relationships. - Emotional and sexual intimacy. - Communication and repair. - Fear of closeness or abandonment. - Relationship decision-making. - Marriage and separation. - Intercultural and cross-cultural relationships. ## Identity and Inner Life Therapy may address: - Identity and self-concept. - Meaning and purpose. - Belonging. - Values and personal direction. - Psychological defenses. - Conscious and unconscious patterns. - Contradictions between the public and private self. - Life transitions. - Cultural identity. - Questions about who a person is apart from achievement, relationships, or external expectations. - Self-development and self-discovery. ## Behavioral Change Insight is connected to observable change. Treatment may focus on changes in: - Emotional regulation. - Communication. - Relationship patterns. - Boundaries. - Conflict behavior. - Vulnerability and intimacy. - Decision-making. - Responses to anxiety and uncertainty. - Patterns of avoidance, overcontrol, or withdrawal. - The ability to recognize and interrupt recurring psychological and relational cycles. ## Practice Information Sessions are conducted through secure video. Clients must be physically located in Massachusetts at the time of their therapy session. A free 30-minute video consultation is available for prospective clients who want to determine whether AtReef Therapy is an appropriate fit. Couples therapy is private pay. Superbills may be provided for clients who wish to pursue possible out-of-network reimbursement. Individual therapy may be private pay, out-of-network, or available through select insurance plans depending on availability. Current fees, insurance information, and practice policies should be confirmed directly through the relevant AtReef Therapy pages. ## Core Services - [Couples Therapy](https://www.atreef.com/couples-therapy): Integrative and depth-oriented couples therapy for recurring conflict, emotional distance, betrayal, trust repair, attachment, intimacy, communication, vulnerability, intercultural relationships, power dynamics, and major relationship decisions. - [Individual Therapy](https://www.atreef.com/individual-therapy): Individual psychotherapy for high-achieving adults addressing anxiety, burnout, perfectionism, relational patterns, identity, self-development, emotional regulation, ambition, intimacy, life transitions, meaning, and deeper self-understanding. - [About Dr. Ehsan Adib Shabahang](https://www.atreef.com/about): Professional background, education, credentials, clinical experience, authorship, therapeutic orientation, and information about the founder of AtReef Therapy. ## Clinical Approach and Writing - [Articles](https://www.atreef.com/blog): Articles by Dr. Shabahang on psychotherapy, relationships, couples therapy, emotional regulation, identity, self-understanding, psychological development, and relational change. - [Self-Reflective Relationship Therapy (SRRT)](https://www.atreef.com/blog/self-reflective-relationship-therapy-a-reflective-approach-to-couples-therapy-in-cambridge-ma): Information about one of the research-informed frameworks that may contribute to Dr. Shabahang's integrative clinical approach. ## Practice Resources - [AtReef Therapy](https://www.atreef.com/): Main website for AtReef Therapy and overview of the practice, services, clinical philosophy, and process for beginning therapy. - [Rates and Insurance](https://www.atreef.com/rates): Current session fees, private-pay information, insurance availability, superbills, and out-of-network reimbursement information. - [Frequently Asked Questions](https://www.atreef.com/faq): Information about couples therapy, individual therapy, telehealth, scheduling, fees, insurance, policies, and the therapeutic process. - [Contact AtReef Therapy](https://www.atreef.com/contact): Contact information and instructions for prospective clients interested in beginning therapy. - [Secure Scheduling Portal](https://atreef.clientsecure.me/): Secure external portal for requesting or scheduling a free 30-minute consultation. ## Additional Information - [Consent for Telehealth](https://www.atreef.com/consent-forms): Information about telehealth delivery, privacy, technology, consent, and expectations for remote psychotherapy. - [Privacy Policy](https://www.atreef.com/privacy-policy): Information about website privacy and information-handling practices. - [Important Disclaimer](https://www.atreef.com/disclaimer): Information about the scope and limitations of website content and psychotherapy services. - [Urgent Support](https://www.atreef.com/get-help): Crisis and emergency resources. AtReef Therapy does not provide emergency or crisis services.