Therapy

I offer psychotherapy for adults experiencing a variety of stressors, mental health challenges, and those seeking life enhancement. I work with people to improve mood, lower distress, understand and process emotions, repair relationships with food and their bodies, heal from trauma, strengthen relationships, find direction, and build vitality.

Some people come to therapy with a set of discrete problems they hope to resolve. Others may seek it out as a step on the path of self-exploration and even liberation. Regardless of your starting point, we’ll move forward together with your needs in mind. 

Because no two relationships are the same, my approach is tailored to each client. Together, we’ll develop a working relationship and define your goals for therapy. My therapeutic orientation is transtheoretical and integrative, meaning that I pull from a number of theories and traditions to serve the whole person in front of me. In sessions, I draw from what I’ve learned as a yoga and mindfulness teacher alongside extensive training in evidence-based therapies for anxiety, depression, trauma, and eating disorders. 

My style is warm, perceptive, and flexible. I listen deeply and consider the relationship between therapist and client to be one of the most important elements for growth. Clients tell me that I am transparent, attuned, and approachable. We’ll start together by identifying and amplifying your individual strengths. From there, we’ll start to explore what might be getting in the way of your ability to thrive. In sessions, I’ll invite you to connect with thoughts, emotions, and your body at the same time.We may practice concrete skills to lower your distress and incorporate more relational work to shed light on patterns that can create or exacerbate suffering.

I find that the combination of building skills and increasing awareness of – and compassion for – how one’s past shows up in the present is empowering for most clients. It also allows the benefits of therapy to take root beyond our time together. I may also take a more direct and challenging approach that invites you to try new ways of thinking, acting, and feeling while we’re in session together.

At its core, therapy involves a willingness to look inward to find freedom alongside another person who is there to witness and guide as needed. It is my true honor to co-create a space where a client feels open enough to touch both pain and joy in therapy. Transformation happens when people can access and fortify the parts of themselves that are innately primed for healing. Together, we can help you flourish.

Clinical Approach

I consider a secure, respectful, and trusting relationship between client and therapist a key ingredient for the bravery needed to heal and transform. Foremost, I work from an experiential (what’s happening for you right now) and relational (what’s happening between us) perspective. I have studied and trained in the following models:

• Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP)
•  Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP) – Certified Level 1
• Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Emotionally-Focused Therapy for Individuals and Couples (EFT)
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
• Motivational Interviewing (MI)

Note: If you have questions about any of these modalities, I am happy to talk to you about them in more depth. 

My areas of clinical interest and experience include but are not limited to:

• Anxiety 
• Depression 
• Difficulty with intimate relationships  
• Eating disorders (bulimia, binge eating, emotional eating) and body image concerns
• Family issues (difficulty connecting with family, growing a family, infertility, new parenthood)
• Issues related to emerging adulthood (ages 18-30) 
• History of trauma (discrete events, PTSD, complex PTSD, early childhood trauma, immigration and resettlement)
• Emotional awareness and regulation 
• Life transitions and adjustment challenges 
• Identity exploration (gender, sexuality, sense of self, race, etc.)
• Career and education exploration 
• Personal growth 
• Needs specific to the LGBTQQIA+ community

I practice under the supervision of  Tyler Beach, MSW, LCSW.

Therapeutic Values

It is my privilege to be a part of Whole Being Therapy. As a collective, we share values around serving the LGBTQ+ community and providing accessible services. My approach is HAES-aligned (Health At Every Size), sex-positive, harm reduction, and queer- and trans-affirming.

I recognize the dialectic that it is not the role of the client to educate a clinician about your culture, nor should a therapist make assumptions about your experiences. I also consider the effects of trauma from specific events, early life experiences, intergenerational trauma, and systemic oppression with clients.

I have experience working with people of all sexual orientations, all gender identities and expressions, people of color, immigrants and refugees, people who practice monogamy and non-monogamy, people from varying class backgrounds, and people with different physical abilities. I especially take joy in serving the needs of LGBTQ+ people and their allies.

Classes, Groups, & Events

As a mindfulness & yoga teacher, I periodically offer multi-week courses and one-off retreats. I am certified to teach Koru Mindfulness, a four-week evidence-based mindfulness curriculum for emerging adults.

In the past, I have facilitated therapeutic support groups for people in recovery from eating disorders and people who are living with chronic pain or chronic illness.