LCSW, 8 years of experience
Aloha! I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) based in Miami, FL. I received my Master of Social Work (2017), B.A. in Psychology (2014) and B.S. in Criminal Justice (2014) from the Florida International University (FIU). I am committed to upholding the core values of social work—respect, empathy, and authenticity—and adopting the holistic Person-In-Environment (PIE) perspective. Ten years ago, I first embarked on my professional journey serving in child welfare, as well as adult forensic and homeless populations. Since 2017, I have been working full time at Citrus Health Network, Inc., one of the largest federally qualified health centers in South Florida, under a grant-funded, coordinated specialty care (CSC), evidence-based program (EBP) known as NAVIGATE, which is designed to treat first episode psychosis. In 2022, the program expanded, and I was designated as Team Leader to help train newcomers. I also supervise a Peer Support Specialist who leverages their lived experience and specialized skills to guide individuals toward wellness in the face of mental health challenges or substance use disorders. I frequently incorporate their insights into my therapy sessions. Since the summer of 2023, I’ve had the honor of serving as a subject matter expert (SME) in psychosis, training Miami police officers in de-escalation techniques and Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) strategies. I served as a parttime Evaluation Coordinator at the FIU Community-Based Research Institute (CBRI) through a subcontract with nonprofit organization, Gang Alternative, Inc. on the Minority Youth Violence Prevention Project, a 4-year (2017-2021) research grant funded by the Office of Minority Health. This program aimed to reduce violence and substance use among adolescents in high-risk minority communities in Miami, FL, such as Little Haiti and Liberty City. Under the supervision of Dr. Michelle Hospital, I was responsible for coordinating research, as an external evaluator.
In our initial meetings, I'll get to know you, provide an orientation to my services, address your inquiries, and set flexible expectations. Our focus will then shift to understanding your wellness, exploring its significance, delving into human resiliency's connection to wellness and begin to identify personal strengths. Together, we'll eventually formulate a personalized plan to help you reach your goals. Since you are also an expert of your own experience, we will use the Shared Decision Making (SDM) model, routinely taking into account your values, priorities, and preferences. We will end the session with a simple, yet effective, relaxation technique that you can immediately equip yourself with.
I've been complimented on cultivating an atmosphere that makes people feel safe and comfortable with my authentic, organic, spontaneous style. I maintain balance through structured flexibility, emphasizing a shared commitment to have a plan and process while remaining adaptable to unforeseen variables and circumstances. In line with this, Feedback Informed Treatment (FIT) encourages ongoing client feedback to ensure therapeutic relevance amid evolving needs, and interests. Overall, I strive to embody the transformative qualities that foster healing within the therapeutic alliance, drawing inspiration from the 8 Cs and 5 Ps of Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy: Calm, Compassionate, Curious, Creative, Confidence, Courage, Connectedness and Clarity. Presence, Patience, Perspective, Persistence, Playfulness.
I find fulfillment in collaborating with individuals across diverse backgrounds, yet my extensive experience lies in supporting teenagers and young adults aged 14-35 navigate severe mental health challenges, guiding them on paths towards realizing their full potential. I’m excited to focus the next chapter of my professional journey on working alongside first responders, providing meaningful, trauma-informed care tailored to their unique experiences and needs. Aside from psychotherapy, I also provided career counseling and troubleshooted school-related issues as a Supported Employment & Education (SEE) Specialist. My specialization in early intervention focuses on individuals in the initial years of mental health recovery, addressing particularly challenging times and playing a pivotal role in enhancing prognosis. To be more specific, my primary specialty is treating early onset of psychosis. Psychosis is a broad term that can be caused by many things, such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective, bipolar, major depression, trauma, and substance-use. Since 2017, I have experience working with each of these conditions, which oftentimes feels debilitating. You may feel hopeless, but there is strong foundation for hope because of human resilience and our innate capacity to heal with the right resources and environmental conditions.
I have been serving as an Indvidual Resiliency Training (IRT) Clinician since 2017 and was designated as LEAD IRT Clinician in 2022. IRT is primarily predicated on recognizing and harnessing personal strengths to navigate adversity effectively. This involves delving into various aspects of ourselves, such as creativity, curiosity, courage, perseverance, love of learning, social intelligence, kindness, leadership, self-control, playfulness/humor, gratitude, and spirituality, among other dimensions. Throughout my tenure, I've had the honor of witnessing numerous individuals not only rediscover but also unearth newfound strength amidst painful challenges. IRT is inherently person-centered infused with elements of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Positive Psychology and Humanism. Additionally, there is a robust foundation of psychoeducation. Knowledge is power!
In 2021, I received an invitation to join the Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) team at Citrus Health Network, Inc., recognizing my track record of successfully assisting numerous individuals in their trauma recovery since 2017. My primary therapeutic approach is Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET), a method conditionally recommended by the American Psychological Association (APA) (https://www.apa.org/ptsd-guideline/treatments/narrative-exposure-therapy). The essence of NET lies in learning to articulate and reshape one's narrative, fostering peace with memories, promoting growth through experiences (known as Posttraumatic Growth or PTG), and instilling confidence to move forward in life. Embracing creativity, including art and music, is actively encouraged, as it often leads to profound results. In addition to NET, I integrate Compassion and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques. This involves methods, such as gradual exposure and challenging self-stigmatizing beliefs, a skill known as cognitive restructuring. Further enhancing my therapeutic toolkit, I completed the MDMA-Assisted Therapy (MDMA-AT) for PTSD certification in 2021. Most notably, the FDA has designated this modality as a breakthrough therapy. Currently, I am wholeheartedly dedicated to establishing my private practice. As I eagerly anticipate FDA approval and legalization, I am poised to incorporate this promising therapeutic approach into my clinical repertoire.
I injected Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) into my practice in 2017, bolstered by 10 months of formal training as a DBT Skills Group Facilitator from 2021 to 2022 at The Center for Evidence Based Treatment (CEBT) - Ohio. I hold a profound appreciation for the DBT philosophy because of its realism, which embraces the inherent complexity and shades of gray in the world. Recognizing that rigid black-and-white constructs ultimately leads to distress and hinder adaptability, I've helped numerous people engage in dialectical thinking to, in turn, maximize cognitive flexibility, and adaptive capabilities. Central to DBT is the acknowledgment of innate wisdom, empowering individuals to craft a life worth living. Practicing mindfulness serves as the conduit to access this inner wisdom, referred to as "Wise Mind" – the delicate balance between emotion and reason. DBT, with its comprehensive approach, equips individuals with skills for distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. By fostering a deep understanding of the intricacies of the human experience, it empowers individuals to navigate life's complexities with resilience and wisdom.
I take pride in my commitment to open-mindedness and the personalized tailoring of therapy to individual needs and interests, employing an integrative/eclectic perspective. Over the past several years, I've successfully integrated mind-body approaches into my practice by collaborating with Yoga and Tai Chi instructors. These practices have demonstrated effectiveness in alleviating symptoms and enhancing the overall quality of life, supported by both empirical and anecdotal evidence. I am a passionate advocate for nature exposure and place significant emphasis on promoting healthy lifestyle modifications, particularly in the areas of sleep, exercise, and nutrition. My journey as a martial artist since 2021, holding a purple belt in Shinto Yoshin Kai Jujitsu, fuels my aspiration to incorporate Therapeutic Martial Arts (TxMA) in the future. Additionally, I find joy in applying concepts from Superhero Therapy (ST) to enrich the therapeutic experience for those who are interested. To further enhance my therapeutic toolkit, I am currently pursuing certification in Internal Family Systems (IFS)—a compassionate, evidence-based approach to healing. IFS views the mind as a team of parts, each with a job to do and a role to play in how we think, feel, and respond. For first responders, many of these parts develop in high-stakes, high-stress environments and act as protectors—internal responders that help you stay mission-ready, maintain control under pressure, manage emotional pain, and shield against overwhelm. Over time, these parts can become overburdened or stuck in survival mode, even after the crisis has passed, making it difficult to fully relax or connect off duty. IFS helps you build awareness, trust, and understanding with these parts, rather than fighting or suppressing them. At the heart of the model is the core Self—a grounded, calm, and capable presence that can lead your internal crew with clarity, confidence, and compassion. For firefighters, IFS offers a particularly relevant lens. The model even includes a class of protectors called “firefighter parts”—so named because, much like on a real call, these parts rush in during emergencies to put out the flames of emotion. Their methods may include distraction, numbing, shutting down, compulsive behaviors, or other reactive coping strategies. These parts typically act out of care and urgency, trying to keep you safe and operational—but over time, they can carry the burden of trauma and begin to burn out. In therapy, we approach these responses with respect, curiosity, and compassion—helping overworked parts let go of extreme roles, restore balance, reduce burnout, and reconnect you with your Self. The result is greater resilience and a stronger sense of wholeness—both on and off the job. I also assimilate chaos theory—also known as complexity theory—a subset of General Systems Theory (GST), which helps explain how humans, as complex adaptive systems, change and grow in response to their dynamic environments. This process, known as self-organization, describes how, following periods of chaos and transition, individuals can integrate new information and resources to evolve into a higher state of adaptive equilibrium. Disorder, unpredictability, and lack of control are natural parts of life. Chaos is a sign that change is needed, and transformation is indeed possible. Thus far, I have received positive feedback from both my clients and colleagues after presenting material on chaos theory at a First Episode Program (FEP) Statewide Summit in Orlando August 1st, 2024.
The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a shift in my therapeutic approach towards group therapy, aiming to mitigate social isolation. Since 2020, I have been actively leading weekly virtual meetings and monthly in-person sessions, strategically designed to reinforce and amplify the impact of my treatment methods within a group setting. In December 2023, I had the honor of being invited to present at a First Episode Program (FEP) Statewide Summit in Daytona Beach. The focus of my presentation was centered around innovative and out-of-the-box methods, including the use of art-based interventions to facilitate individuals in narrating their stories. This novel approach not only provides a unique avenue for self-expression but also contributed to the overall effectiveness of the therapeutic process. On September 19th, 2024, I hosted the first art exhibit for my clients who have told their stories of recovery and resilience through the expressive arts, and many more to come.