There is no agony like bearing an untold story inside of you.
— Maya Angelou
Photo by Derek Thomson on Unsplash

I help adults bring ease to anxiety, depression, relationship challenges, life transitions, and the traumatic effects of a difficult childhood.

Are we a good fit?

I truly believe there’s a great therapist out there for anyone who needs one. My practice attracts self-reflective people who are invested in their mental and emotional wellness, crave space to get in touch with their feelings, and can relate to any of the following issues:

Relationships: How to understand your feelings, trust your experience, and feel more connected to others and yourself.

  • You grew up experiencing family conflict, separation, intense stress, or childhood emotional neglect, and now you find yourself ambivalent about relationships or feel like you don’t know how to invest in a real relationship, whether you’re in one or not.

  • You tend to give more than you receive, personally or professionally, and feel resentful or exhausted.

  • Bad relationships are part of your history, and you may want more, but wonder if this is just the best you can do.

  • Your early caregivers didn’t understand how to support you emotionally, leading you to doubt or ignore your own feelings and needs.

Identity: How to reconcile your personal identity with external messages and conditioning, who you were told you are.

  • You want to more fully express fundamental beliefs or parts of your identity but worry about others’ understanding or acceptance.

  • You grew up feeling misunderstood in your identity by your family, community, or society at large, and while you want to respect others’ experiences, you want space to live your own truth. (This could mean anything from racial or gender identity to career choice, hobby and lifestyle choices, spirituality, or being a highly sensitive person.)

 

What does therapy look like?

I view therapy as a collaborative process: understanding your internal experience, including your strengths, is a key task for us both. Given that foundation, depending on your needs:

  • We might explore the influence of past events on your present beliefs and coping strategies.

  • We might make supportive space for your present-moment thoughts, emotions, or body sensations to help you understand a confusing situation, or to release physical tension that can remain stuck in our bodies long after a traumatic experience.

  • We might look at how you tend to deal with your feelings and find healthier options for you. 

  • All this can include discussion, mindfulness exercises, somatic (body-based) awareness activities, or good old problem-solving.

In our work together, the focus is on you: your history, your patterns, your emotional responses. By getting familiar with your internal experiences and learning to work skillfully with them, you will make more informed and intentional life choices. There’s nothing wrong with you or about you—our goal together is for you to feel excited about your life moving forward and not feel beholden to your past.

 

More about my approach

As an integrative psychotherapist, my clinical approach is well rounded and tailored to your needs. Within a psychodynamic foundation, I blend mindful self-compassion, relational/analytic, somatic, and Internal Family Systems interventions to support your healing process.

I believe therapy works best when we become curious and attentive to your moment-to-moment inner experience, which leads you to the insights and answers that work best for you.

My style is earnest and directive, yet intuitive and spacious. I might challenge your thinking about a situation or help you explore practical options, but I’m just as likely to hang back at a charged moment to allow your inner experience to bring you insight. I will always support your autonomy, your mindful self-reflection, and radical acceptance of your thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations.

Everyone's story is unique, so your timeline and progress will depend on our chemistry together, your readiness to invest in therapy, your ongoing commitment, and your goals.

Think we could be a match? Contact me to get started.