Welcome

I’m so glad you're here on this journey. Whether you're seeking support for yourself or as a couple, this is a welcoming space where you matter, feelings are valued, your experiences are honored, and meaningful change happens. Together, we will:

• Walk forward towards your hopes

• Bring self-compassion to difficult emotions

• Tap into your inner strengths and resources

• Celebrate growth and new awarenesses

I am a licensed marriage and family therapist, with a BA from the University of California at Davis, and an MA in Counseling Psychology from The Wright Institute in Berkeley, California. I am also a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional - Level II (CCTP-II.) I practice in California and Oregon and meet with clients in-person (CA only) and via telehealth.

I bring to my practice, experience working with people in a therapeutic setting, and supporting families through the challenging divorce process. We will work together at a pace comfortable for you, in a supportive and non-judgmental space that allows for gentle and steady growth. In my previous career as a family law paralegal, I provided a compassionate presence for couples during major life transitions, by creating an environment where clients felt respected, supported, and empowered.

I began my therapeutic work during graduate school, as a therapist with several community mental health agencies in the Bay Area, helping families and students navigate often oppressive school systems, providing therapy, conducting crisis intervention and case management, and connecting clients with community resources. My clinical experience also includes providing therapy at an intensive outpatient teen clinic in Berkeley, supporting young clients managing severe symptoms of anxiety and depression, and facilitating weekly support groups for their families. I continue to witness the resilience, strength, and inner resources of all the people I work with, which has served to foster my continued motivation to help inspire hope and self-love in this healing work.

I value family, culture, and community. Discussing cultural values and norms is an important part of my clinical work with clients, as the individual and unique lens with which we experience the world defines who we are. I am committed to honoring, respecting, and responding thoughtfully to the diverse cultural backgrounds, beliefs, and experiences of everyone.

There seems to be a time in our life when we open to the venture of an internal personal journey. Mine began in my early 30’s, in 12-step recovery rooms addressing my patterns of co-dependency and people-pleasing. I was quickly guided into a new and empowering direction of self-love, with tools along the way to build healthy relationships and comfort my inner child. Through being in community with others, we can bring awareness to our thoughts and begin to identify and express emotions in healthy ways. All of this takes place within the body, so learning how to regulate and calm our nervous system begins with noticing sensations.

In Our Sessions

On this journey of self-discovery, I ask clients to bring an open and curious mind, as they discover the beauty and depth that lies within their mind, heart, and body. In a collaborative setting, we focus on issues of trust and intimacy, anxiety, hypervigilance, shame and the inner child, boundary-setting, building emotional expression, attachment and communication patterns, and self-compassion.

In a safe, supportive space, I help couples and individuals bring to light their own awareness, intuition, curiosity, and strengths. I use a relational approach focusing on the healing power of authentic human connection to build an empathic therapeutic bond with my clients. I emphasize how our patterns of relating to ourselves and others are shaped through relationships, with the quality of our relationships determining the quality of our lives.

To support meaningful, lasting change in these journeys with my clients, I provide a psychological framework from Attachment Theory, which explains how the early emotional bonds with our caregivers influence the way we relate to others throughout life. In my approach, I utilize techniques and tools from Psychodynamic Therapy, Family Systems Therapy, Emotion Focused Therapy, Compassion Focused Therapy, and Dr. John Gottman’s & Dr. Julie Schwartz Gottman’s Couples Therapy. Part of our work together, will include learning and practicing easy-to-use mindfulness and grounding exercises to help regulate the nervous system and support whole mind-body healing.