About You
You have a lot on your plate.
Your roles at work and home consume your daily life. And now, with this perpetual pandemic, you don’t know where to turn.
You’ve gotten help from others before – turned to friends and families, read books on happiness and success.
But so far, the answers you’ve found aren’t enough to get a handle on things and make you feel whole.
You know success, but…
You’ve achieved – and sometimes even thrived, but this is different.
You have these lingering memories – moments that stand frozen in time.
They make it heavy to breathe – make you question everything.
Sometimes, they seem inescapable – make you feel as though nothing will be right ever again. You don’t know what to do.
This is where I come in.
I’ll help you break free of all this.
Together, we’ll find the deeper truth about who you are and – more importantly – who you dream of being.
When we work together, you’ll have the support and confidence to examine your life comprehensively.
There may be tears; there may be painful feelings that make you want to run away; there may even be tidal waves of anger and frustration that seem beyond your control. That’s okay.
All these seemingly unrelenting pressures you’ve been suffering with for so long are parts you are NOW ready to heal.
A Journey of Self-Discovery and Empowerment
When we work together, you will learn more about who you are.
You’ll be able to frame those painful memories that follow you like a shadow.
You won’t just gain understanding – you’ll develop surprising courage and inspiring spirit.
Once free from these burdens, you can focus on building more secure relationships and cultivating the well-being and meaning you deserve.
About Me
I understand – because I’ve been there.
My mission:
To help create secure relationships with each other and extend the security into our community.
To support and empower individuals to grow secure relationships with themselves to bring forth a healthier community.
To bring warmth and understanding to explore your emotional wounds safely.
To use my knowledge and expertise and a wide range of skills from EMDR, art therapy, CBT, DBT, and beyond to provide you the opportunity to put yourself back together again and start enjoying the life you truly desire.
I’m ready to meet you!
I went to school in the San Francisco Bay Area at Notre d Dame de Namur University, where I received my Master’s degree as a Marriage and Family Therapist / Art therapist.
My first job was the Director of Rehabilitation at an inpatient mental health center, where I led groups and had the opportunity to hone my leadership skills with my amazing staff. The groups my team led were fun and engaging (and definitely wild at times!). I learned so much about compassion, patience, and my perspective on reality changed to be more inclusive and welcoming.
I helped families work through their grief related to their loved ones having chronic mental health challenges and helped our residents get through the day, learning skills and sharing in their challenges. This was like a mental health boot camp which very few therapists have experienced. I cherish my time there and often miss the residents I worked with for five years.
My experience continued building…
When I moved back to Michigan from California, I worked with elders using art and recreational therapy. Then, I went to Partial Hospitalization, Intensive Outpatient, Emergency Room Mental Health, and outreach. You can imagine that I have seen a lot of people on their worst days in those settings. This experience caused me to feel hopeless because once patients are discharged, you never see them again.
A dear friend said to me, “Why don’t you help people stay out of the hospital?” and so… that is what I did.
I set my goal to open a private practice and diligently work to build a space where people can truly heal. To the best of my ability, I try to help those who are suffering from mental health disturbances lead the best life they possibly can, using evidence-based skills and theories, as well as the age-old mentality, “I’ll care about you, so you can learn how to care better for yourself.”
In my free time…
And when not working with you, I am married to a great man and am the proud mom of two kiddos and two cats. You can usually find us hiking or dancing.