KNOW YOUR PROVIDER

​

​Since 2007, I have been actively immersed in professional and educational undertakings essential to the inner workings of my practice. I have been providing post-graduate counseling services since 2017, followed by establishing my private practice shortly after gaining independent licensure in 2019. In recent years, I have focused on offering individual & relationship counseling, in addition to professional consultation for helping professionals and organizations. ​

 

While residing in the Pacific Northwest, I attended Lewis & Clark Graduate School of Education and Counseling. Upon completion, I attained a master's degree in clinical mental health counseling with a primary focus in social justice, and an advanced graduate subspecialty in treating addictions. My pre-master's studies centered clinical psychology, feminist theory, and women's social-emotional health. I've remained committed to growing my craft through ongoing trainings, courses, and relevant intensives.

​​​​​

​

In 2021, I completed EMDR training through an EMDRIA accredited institute. I have since observed the significant benefits this modality offers. I am currently participating in a specialist certification program focused on meeting the clinical needs of those with ADHD.

​

​

Over the years, I have been involved in various efforts focused on policy reformation and critical resource distribution across communities. Despite working almost exclusively with adults in my practice, I tend to prioritize youth-centered advocacy engagements, such as working to increase sustainable housing & promoting Housing First practices among those typically enforcing the strongest barriers to entry. In collaboration with a trusted colleague, we designed & implemented three distinct Housing First programs, which remain operative to date in successful alignment with their primary mission.

​​

​​

​

​PHILOSOPHY & PRACTICE:

​

I am compelled by the multifaceted world of person-to-person relational & emotional labor(s).​ 

 

Each session provides deep focus exclusively on you as we function in mindful collaboration toward your defined ideals & desires. ​When we work together, you can expect participation that strives to honor your unique lived experience, and intersecting identities. You will receive accessible strengths-based psychoeducation, and therapeutic coaching relevant to your goals. We will determine a well-suited path for our work as collaborators in your growth process.

​​​​​

​

The theories I most frequently draw upon in psychotherapy include the following:

​​​

Psychodynamic Therapy

Existential 

Attachment Theory

Relational Integrative

IFS/Parts Work

Metacognitive/Philosophical

Social Influence Theory

Somatic Therapy

EMDR

   Trauma Informed Yoga Practitioner

Creative Expressional 

​

 

​​

​​​​

I take an active & educational approach across service-types. This more directive style exists in opposition to the traditional passive presentation of psychotherapist most frequently represented in pop-psychology, and media. All brands of this important work hold capacity to be valuable, but that doesn't mean every style, or every provider will meet your personal preferences. Though it is not always possible to speculate in advance about how it might feel to work with a particular counselor or consultant, I encourage you to assess for compatibility cues, and make thoughtful decisions for yourself when possible. 

​

​

I firmly believe providers who seek to practice responsibly must acknowledge the harmful inner workings of our domestic healthcare system, including the ways in which race, class, gender, sexual orientation, and many additional identity considerations continue to be inappropriately burdened by widely accepted norms in healthcare that work to uphold oppression at the cost of initial stated mission(s), and against possibilities for person-centered care. Too often individuals who appear to meet diagnostic criteria for particular "disorders" are actually enduring a chronic stress response in proportion to the relentless impacts of systemic oppression & associated restriction of critical resources. When diagnostic considerations are relevant in our work, the determination process will be consensual and participatory.

 

PERSONAL LIFE: ​

​

I embody a daily commitment to my craft that spans well beyond the bounds of time spent in live sessions with others. Prioritizing meaningful  personal experiences that satiate my own creative, somatic, relational, and emotional yearnings ultimately makes it possible for me to authentically & deeply join with another in this work. 

​

In my spare time I can often be found in community yoga classes. I have been practicing yoga for many years while regularly benefitting from the  balance it encourages between a strong personal tendency toward reflexive intellectualization, against a practice of neutral observation & passive awareness of my own thoughts, feelings, and somatic responses. I prefer hot yoga as I'm naturally wired for intensity. Anything that commands acute awareness of my physical/somatic being has proven over time to be my greatest source of (otherwise untapped) information. I also enjoy hiking, trail running, and taking long strolls around my neighborhood with my four-legged rescue companion.

 

I am a grateful parent of two young children who mean nothing short of the world to me. The experience of parenting continues to dismantle much of what I thought I knew beforehand in order to make space for what my children would have me know. Some of my favorite things to do as a family include writing & singing songs with my oldest, which often results in spontaneous displays of song and dance in the living room. I am self-taught on guitar and ukulele courtesy of many sleepless nights throughout high school in the early 2000s. Dance is crucial to my sense of freedom and aliveness. I imagine I will find new ways & places to dance until I can no longer rise on my own. For those interested, I am trained as a trauma informed yoga practitioner. We can integrate yoga in clinical interventions as desired.

​​

Other interests include creative writing in form of short essay, poetry, or personal narrative. I feel most grounded when curled up with a good book, with a particular appreciation for non-fiction, or lyrical memoirs. I am admittedly a "self-help" enthusiast despite the bad reputation this section of literary preference tends to endure. I make it a point to immerse myself in natural bodies of water as much as possible throughout the warmer months as a means of energetic renewal, and to satisfy a striving for immersive connectedness with the natural world. While I love playing & listening to music, I am a podcast enthusiast to my core; I will typically have a useful recommendation at the ready for friends & clients alike.

 

I am frequently guided by values of social & communal inclusivity, systems reformation, radical curiosity, philosophical speculation, creative expression, and all forms of righteous rebellion against gross misuses of authority. I believe radical change is the birthright of every individual, as is failure, pleasure, and the right to "do things badly" solely for benign personal joy. I believe we are all inherently creative & in fact creating constantly.

​

I am incredibly fascinated by paradox in all matters of the heart and human relationships. I actively enjoy exploring the qualities of tension one interfaces with across social-relational spheres, and the various behaviors compelled by instinctual urges to collapse the paradox from one side or another in order to simplify how we navigate our social & systemic realities.

 

I believe the overall quality and effectiveness of any client-counselor partnership is ultimately determined by how much heart and awareness of mutual humanity exists central in the work, which must in a significant percentage contrast the sterile portrayal of a treatment relationship founded solely on symptom mitigation and diagnostic relevancies as the rule. While there is an element of these components present in many treatment relationships this work can be much richer and expansive than what we are commonly sold in the capitalistic, or insurance-based models of mental health care. Feel free to inquire directly if you would benefit from learning more about the less commonly stated benefits of entering into a supportive collaboration that focuses exclusively on your desires for personal development and/or relationship(s) enhancement. 

​

Becoming a trusted collaborator is a tremendous honor. Transparency & education will be integrated throughout our work, so you will walk away with an embodied understanding of how and why the chosen framework(s) relate to your ideal outcomes. Ultimately, our time together should serve to nurture valuable insights and fresh practices, resulting in meaningful transformation & goal attainment.

​​​​

Contact me for a free 15-minute consultation.