Licensed to practice in 2 states and accepts 11 insurances. Specializes in Addiction / Substance Use, Life Transitions, Trauma and PTSD
(she/her)
New to Grow
I attended John F. Kennedy Graduate School for Holistic Studies. I obtained a Master's Degree in Counseling Psychology with a transpersonal specialization in 2001. I also received a certificate in Addiction Studies. I was first licensed as a Marriage Family Therapist in California in 2006. I bring over 20 years of experience working with individuals who are struggling with addiction and working towards recovery. I also hold a Clinical Fellows designation with the American Association of Marriage Family Therapist.
During our first session, I will be conducting an assessment that enables me to get to know you and your history and why you are seeking treatment at this time. I will provide you a safe and confidential space.
For therapy to be successful there must be trust between us. In the initial stage of the therapeutic process we will be getting to know one another and developing a safe place for you to engage in the work. I am a compassionate person with a true desire to help. I have a special ability to help individuals feel relaxed and safe to open up. I don't judge any shared behaviors as being maladaptive or bad.
I enjoy working with clients who are struggling with all forms of addiction and helping them find solutions that work for them. I also enjoy helping clients navigate major life transitions that we all face as we age. This can include separation and divorce, grief and loss, empty nest syndrome, aging parents ,what retirement looks like for the client and many others.
This is a form of talk therapy that explores how your unconscious mind, past memories, and childhood experiences shape your current behavior and relationship to yourself and others.
I use Motivational interviewing to assist the client to know where they are in the process of changing. This helps the client work through their resistance and helps the client take the next step to effect the positive changes they desire for their life.
Narrative therapy helps the client re-write their life story and in the process the client can change the way they believe about things from their past. This brings the client to a new way of looking at their past and brings more hope for their future.
When a client has one issue they want to work through, this method focuses on that one goal. I will assist the client in defining when their goal has been met.