(she/her)
Hello! My name is Julia and I am a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in the state of Pennsylvania. I understand what it's like to feel hopeless, stuck, and trapped in the cycle of emotional suffering due to trauma and other circumstances which can make life feel unmanageable. If those feelings sound familiar to you, you've come to the right place. My work centers around helping clients heal from traumatic experiences by learning to cope with symptoms and behaviors associated with trauma and related mental health diagnoses including anxiety, depression, OCD, and mood and personality disorders. I am certified in Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (C-DBT) as well as Clinical Trauma with a focus on Complex Trauma (CCTP-II). My training as an LMFT means that I use a systemic approach in order to address the ways in which symptoms may emerge within relational dynamics, work and career, and life transitions.
You can expect to feel heard, validated, and supported as we begin to explore the patterns which may be keeping you stuck. We will then begin to identify your goals while working together so that you can gain the knowledge, insight, and tools to better understand yourself and your personal strengths while building mastery and resiliency so that you can live life on your own terms in spite of whatever challenges may have brought you here. Maybe you've tried therapy before and you didn't find the knowledge or tools to better understand yourself so that you can take tangible steps towards doing things differently. If you want to learn concrete skills to help you cope with painful emotions without making things worse for yourself or your relationships, I can help. Rather than just talking about your feelings, you will learn specific tools to practice when feeling numb, overwhelmed, or out of control.
I am an anti-racist, LGBTQIA-affirming practitioner dedicated to dismantling oppressive structures and systems as they relate to the mental health and wellness of my clients while remaining in tune to each client's individual experiences and beliefs in order to build a safe and validating environment for all clients.
I am best positioned to work with individual adults in their 20s, 30s, and 40s.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
DBT is an evidence-based practice which includes concrete skills related to mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal relationships. In addition to individual sessions, I offer a virtual trauma-informed DBT skills group in which clients will learn and discuss their application of skills in real life situations. Cost of group: $75
Trauma Informed Care
My training in Complex Trauma has helped me to gain knowledge and insight around the ways that past trauma can affect our day to day lives. With this knowledge we can identify the cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physiological ways in which trauma shows up for us and learn to calm the brain and body in order to make everyday life more manageable. This allows us to begin the deeper work of post-traumatic growth, which many define as a renewed sense of self, strength, and resiliency which will begin to blossom through the process of exploring these experiences with the help of a therapist.