(she/her)
New to Grow
I am a clinical social worker with a decade of experience supporting adolescents, adults, and older adults through life's most pressing challenges. Before transitioning into clinical practice, I worked within organizations helping employees navigate workplace stress and the broader life issues that often accompany it. My own life transition during that time deepened my appreciation for the courage it takes to seek support, and I now draw on those transferable skills alongside my academic and work experiences as a master's in social work and doctorate in organizational behavior professional. I bring a compassionate, integrative, and culturally responsive approach that meets each client where they are, helping you build meaningful coping skills, deepen self-understanding, and move toward sustainable change.
Our first session is an opportunity for us to get to know one another and begin building the foundation of our work together. I will ask about what has brought you to therapy at this moment, the experiences and relationships that have shaped you, and the goals you hope to move toward in your life. I will also invite your questions about my approach, my background, and what therapy with me looks like in practice, because feeling comfortable with your therapist is essential to meaningful progress. There is no pressure to share more than feels right in that first meeting; my role is to listen attentively, hold space for whatever you bring, and help you begin to see your situation with greater clarity. By the end of our time together, we will have a shared sense of what brought you in, what you are hoping for, and how we might work together to get there.
My greatest strength is the way my dual training in clinical social work and organizational behavior allows me to see the whole of a person's life: the inner world of thoughts and emotions, and the outer world of relationships, workplaces, and broader systems that shape well-being. Clients often share that they feel genuinely heard and understood in our sessions, and that I bring both warmth and honest reflection to the work. I am skilled at helping individuals make sense of complex experiences, including chronic stress, trauma, and the pressures of demanding careers or academic life, and I draw on a range of evidence-based approaches, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and compassion-focused practices, integrating them in a way that fits each client's needs. Above all, I bring a steady, collaborative presence that helps clients feel safe enough to do the meaningful work of growth.
I am especially well-suited to working with adolescents, adults, and older adults who are navigating anxiety, depression, life transitions, relationship challenges, identity exploration, and the chronic stress that so often occurs throughout the trajectory of life. The individuals I serve are often quietly struggling beneath the surface, and they come to therapy seeking both meaningful coping skills for the present moment and a deeper understanding of the patterns that have shaped them. My clients span a wide range of ages and life stages; some are students immersed in the pressures of school, others are professionals balancing the weight of demanding careers, and others are in retirement reflecting on the chapters that have come before. Many are also working through delicate relationship dynamics, or exploring deeper questions about identity, purpose, and self-worth. My approach is compassionate, integrative, and culturally responsive, thoughtfully tailored to each client's unique needs and the context of their lived experience. Together, we will build a collaborative and steady partnership, one in which you leave each session with both renewed clarity and concrete next steps to carry forward.
Other specialties
I identify as
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I have used Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for nearly a decade across university counseling, group practice, and private practice settings with adolescents, emerging adults, and adults. In my practice, I help clients identify the thought patterns that fuel anxiety, depression, self-doubt, and workplace stress, and then collaboratively test those thoughts against reality and respond to them differently. I pair structured tools such as thought records and behavioral experiments with transparent, compassionate, and culturally responsive conversation, so clients leave each session with a clear sense of what to try between visits.
Acceptance and commitment (ACT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy has been a core part of my work since my clinical training, and I draw on it often with clients navigating life transitions, career decisions, and the chronic stress that can come with demanding work environments. I use ACT to help clients build psychological flexibility: loosening the grip of painful thoughts and feelings through mindfulness, clarifying what genuinely matters to them, and channeling their energy into committed action. The work is collaborative, practical, and grounded in each client's cultural context, so they learn to move toward a meaningful life even when discomfort is present.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
I have used Dialectical Behavior Therapy for years in both group and individual settings, including co-facilitating DBT-based coping skills groups earlier in my clinical career, and I continue drawing on it with clients managing intense emotions, relationship instability, and self-destructive patterns. My practice integrates the four DBT skill areas of mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness into individual sessions in a way that fits each client's life and cultural context. I hold the dialectic at the center: full acceptance of where a client is right now, alongside genuine commitment to change.
Trauma Informed Care
Trauma-informed care is the foundation of my clinical and research work; my doctoral research examined the cycle of traumatic stress across the lifespan, and I have published and presented on early life trauma, workplace stress, and recovery in adulthood. In sessions, this means I prioritize safety, choice, collaboration, and transparency before any technique, and I pace the work to each client's nervous system rather than a predetermined timeline. My organizational behavior background and culturally responsive lens also inform how I help clients make sense of trauma that has been shaped or compounded by their work environments.
Compassion Focused
Compassion-Focused Therapy has been part of my integrative approach since my clinical training and is especially valuable for clients whose inner critic is loud, persistent, or shaped by early experiences of shame, loss, or chronic professional pressure. I help clients build the capacity to relate to themselves with the same warmth and steadiness they might offer a person they love, using imagery, breathing practices, and gentle inquiry into the origins of self-criticism. The aim is not to silence difficult feelings but to develop a soothing internal voice that can hold them.