In our first session together, here's what you can expect

The first session is something I think about with a lot of care, because I know how much courage it takes to show up. Whether you have been in therapy before or this is your first time, there is something vulnerable about sitting down with someone new and beginning to tell your story. I want you to know that I hold that with a lot of respect. The first session is not about fixing anything. It is not a test, and there is no way to do it wrong. It is simply an opportunity for us to begin getting to know each other, and for me to start understanding who you are, what has brought you here, and what you are hoping for. I will ask you some questions. Some of them will be practical, covering a bit of background, some history, what is going on in your life right now. But I am not running through a checklist. I am genuinely curious about you as a whole person, not just your symptoms or your presenting concerns. I want to know what your life looks like, what matters to you, what has been hard, and what has brought you to this particular moment. You do not have to have a perfectly articulated answer to any of it. We are just beginning to open the door. You are also in charge of how much you share in the first session (and in every session!). You do not have to tell me everything right away or go to the hard places before you are ready. Trust is built over time, and I am not in a rush. If something feels like too much to get into yet, it is completely okay to say so. In fact, I believe it is important to ensure a safe relationship before exploring some of the most challenging or painful things. Ideally, we will uncover these parts together over time and never feel the need to hurry through. I also want you to know that the first session is not just me evaluating you, it is also you evaluating me. I want you to leave with a genuine sense of who I am, how I work, and whether this feels like a place you could see yourself returning to. Your instincts matter, and a good therapeutic fit is one of the most important ingredients in successful therapy. I encourage you to ask me anything that would help you feel more informed and at ease, about my approach, my background, or anything else on your mind. I will likely ask you at some point what you are hoping to get out of our work together. This does not have to be a perfectly formed goal. Sometimes people come in knowing exactly what they want to work on, and sometimes people come in knowing only that something is not rig

The biggest strengths that I bring into our sessions

One of the things I hear most from clients is that they feel truly heard, sometimes for the first time. Not just listened to, but genuinely understood. That is something I take a lot of pride in, and it is something I work at intentionally. I believe that feeling deeply seen by another person is itself a profound act of healing, and I bring my full attention and presence to every session with that in mind. In a world that moves fast and often rewards people for keeping things surface level, I think there is something radical about slowing down and really being with someone. That is what I try to offer. I also think what makes me different is that I bring my whole self to this work. My empathy is not clinical or distant. It is real, and clients feel that. I am not just theoretically compassionate. I genuinely care about the people I work with, and that care shows up in the quality of attention I bring, in the way I hold what clients share with me, and in my deep commitment to their growth and wellbeing. I did not come to this work because it seemed like a good career. I came to it because I believe in it, and that comes through in every session. I am also direct. I care too much about my clients to simply reflect back what they say and nod along. When I notice something, I will name it. When I see a pattern worth exploring, I will bring it into the room. When something you are telling yourself does not quite add up, I will gently say so. Some of my favorite moments in therapy are when I offer a reflection and a client pauses and says, hm, I have never thought about it that way before. That moment of seeing yourself or your situation from a new angle, that is where something shifts. I live for those moments, and I work to create the conditions where they can happen. It is not about being clever or having the right answer. It is about paying close enough attention to the person in front of me that I can offer something back that they could not quite see on their own. At the same time, I hold that directness alongside a lot of warmth. Clients often tell me that our sessions feel safe in a way that surprises them, that they can say things they have never said out loud and feel accepted rather than evaluated. That combination of honesty and safety is something I work hard to cultivate, because I think it is where the real work happens. Being challenged and being held are not opposites. The best therapy contains both, and finding that balance is something I am

The clients I'm best positioned to serve

My ideal clients are teens and adults who are ready to do more than just manage their symptoms. They want to understand themselves more deeply, make sense of their patterns, and do the real work of lasting change. If you are someone who lies awake at night thinking about why you do the things you do, who finds yourself drawn to questions about identity, meaning, and your place in the world, we are probably going to get along well. What I love most about the work I do is the deep dive. I am not a therapist who is going to hand you a worksheet and send you on your way. I love sitting with clients in the complexity of who they are, exploring the patterns that keep showing up, the stories they have been telling themselves for years, the moments in their history that quietly shaped everything that came after. If you are someone who genuinely enjoys that kind of exploration, who gets a little excited by the idea of truly understanding yourself, I want to work with you. I also want to be honest about something: therapy does not have to feel heavy all the time. I appreciate levity. I enjoy noticing the absurdity in the very human ways we all keep ourselves stuck, and I think there is something genuinely healing about being able to find a little lightness in the middle of hard things. That said, I know when to set that aside. When you need me to be fully present and serious, I am there. I can hold both, and I will always follow your lead. I work especially well with clients who are in the middle of something, a transition, a turning point, a moment where life is asking them to become someone slightly different than who they have been. Maybe you are leaving a relationship, or starting one. Maybe you have just hit a milestone birthday and something feels unsettled. Maybe your career is changing, or your family is, or you have moved somewhere new and you are not sure who you are in this new context. Maybe you have done a lot of growing and you are ready to consolidate that growth and understand it more fully. These in-between moments are some of the richest territory there is in therapy, and I love being present for them. My ideal client is someone who shows up. Not someone who has it all together (nobody does), but someone who is willing to be present in the room, to engage honestly, to bring what is actually going on for them rather than what they think they should be bringing. I do my best work with clients who are curious, open, and willing to be a little unco