(she/her)
New to Grow
I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in Pennsylvania who earned my Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy from Seton Hill University in 2010. For more than 17 years, I have provided behavioral health services across inpatient, outpatient, and home- and community-based settings, working with children, adolescents, adults, older adults, couples, and families. My passion is helping others reach their fullest potentials by identifying goals and developing a plan to work together to achieve those goals and improve their quality of life.
In my first session with clients, I prefer to discuss current struggles or places where they feel stuck as well as where they would prefer to be and times in their lives when clients felt less stuck or was able to overcome these struggles. These often become the goals that are the focus for the initial stages of therapy. I typically complete a full biopsychosocial assessment in the first session to ensure that all areas of the client and their life is included when identifying strengths, limitations and goals. Within the first 1-2 sessions, I work with each client to develop a treatment plan to follow throughout treatment as the client and I work to find solutions to the problems that brought them in for therapy.
My approach is built upon establishing a collaborative working relationship with each person who decides to see me for therapy. I use a solution-focused approach where I respect each individual as the expert on their own life and experiences. I lend my experience in working with a variety of people from a variety of backgrounds to develop a plan that will allow each individual to reach their fullest potential. I specialize in grief and loss, stress management, anger management, parent/caregiver support, employment-related issues, and issues related to attachment and family of origin. With a background in structural-strategic family therapy, I am able to zoom in to help each person explore their own internal experiences as well as zoom out to inspect the external forces that act upon them to address seeking solutions to life's challenges in a holistic way.
I enjoy working with teenagers and adults who are seeking answers to questions or solutions to problems that they are encountering in their lives. I most enjoy career counseling, helping others learn mindfulness and skills to help manage their emotions and assisting parents, especially parents of children with their own struggles. I love working with people who are ready to make a lasting change in their lives, but I am also skilled at working with people who aren't sure if they are ready to change. I have 13 years of experience working with people with severe and persistent mental illnesses, including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.
Solution Focused Brief Treatment
I utilize Solution Focused Brief Treatment to help clarify what problems you are facing and what solutions/goals you would like to implement/achieve. This helps me work with you to develop treatment plan goals and track progress toward goals. SFBT was the first modality of therapy that I learned as I gravitated toward the idea of working collaboratively with you to utilize your expertise in being you and my experience in working with others with similar struggles to help you find solutions utilizing your strengths and past experiences.
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I utilize CBT techniques to help you achieve your goals when they involve changing the ways you think or react to thoughts. I have utilized this treatment method for 17 years.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
I have been using DBT techniques for 10+ years to help people who struggle with being in the moment without fixating on the past or the future, those who struggle with emotional regulation, those who struggle with tolerating distress, and those who struggle with being effective in interactions with others.
Exposure Response Prevention (ERP)
I have been using Exposure Response Prevention for the past five years, primarily in my work with those who struggle with symptoms of obsessions or compulsions, including counting, checking, handwashing, ect.
Attachment-based
I utilize the concepts of Attachment-based therapy to help you explore the ways that your attachment style formed in childhood in relation to your primary caregiver(s) and how that attachment style is affecting your current relationships. I have been interested in and practicing Attachment Therapy for 17 years.