LCSW, 10 years of experience
New to Grow
I would describe my style as validating, supportive, and down to earth. Clients often share that they feel comfortable being their authentic selves with me, which is one of my highest priorities in the therapy space. I bring both professional expertise and lived experience, creating a balance of humility and wisdom. While I don’t claim to know everything, I work hard to share what I’ve learned while remaining open and collaborative. I view therapy as a relationship that parallels the important connections in your life. I will meet you where you are, get to know you on your terms, and walk alongside you as you move toward growth. My goal is to provide a safe environment where you feel respected, supported, and challenged to become the best version of yourself.
I know that starting therapy can feel overwhelming, and I want to make the process as comfortable as possible. In our first session, I’ll explain what to expect and answer any questions to ease your worries. We’ll do a surface overview of your history and experiences, with the understanding that you can always choose what you’d like to share and when. If we touch on something that feels especially emotional, I may suggest saving it for a later session so we can give it the attention it deserves without leaving you feeling raw or unsupported. I often remind clients that it’s impossible to summarize an entire life in one hour, so together we’ll identify the areas most important to you and create a path forward at a pace that feels right.
Clients often describe me as approachable, easygoing, and genuine. I work hard to build trust, knowing that therapy requires a strong connection between provider and client. I encourage clients to view our early sessions as a two-way process: you are also getting to know me and deciding whether I feel like the right match for you. I believe what makes me unique is my ability to blend life experience with clinical insight. I strive to create a space where you feel safe, seen, and respected. At times, when appropriate, I may share lessons I’ve learned to help illuminate your path. My ultimate goal is for you to feel empowered to grow into the person you want to be, supported by a relationship built on honesty, compassion, and trust.
I work best with clients who may not know exactly where they want to go, but who are ready for things to feel different than they do right now. I especially enjoy working with people who may be unsure about therapy, who have had mixed or negative experiences in the past, or who are questioning whether this process is right for them. Together, we can rebuild trust in yourself and in the therapy process. I find it rewarding to work with individuals who want support, accountability, and encouragement to face the difficult places in their lives. I often ask clients to imagine: “If your biggest struggle were lifted, what would life look like?” From there, we create a vision together and work step by step toward making that vision a reality.
I believe that this modality is a heavy influence for me. The basic concept that our perception to a stimuli creates our thoughts and then ultimately creates our emotions and subsequent behavior reactions feel so large to me. When an individual presents to me wanting to alter their emotions, perceptions and reactions this is my go to teaching. Our perceptions are often our reality and when we can see a stimuli differently we can alter end results.
While EMDR will not be correct for every client there are many tools of this modality that find their way into my treatments. I believe an emphasis of this modality is that ability to feel safe in our skin and the ability to pendulate with a foot our past memories while still holding another foot consistently in the present moment. The goal behind this is to not feel consumed by our past memories, especially when those memories bring you distress.