After over fifteen years of working in the mental health field, I have come to believe that counseling is a process that is centered in relationship in which individuals seek to gain insight and knowledge, find meaning, and be known. Through this collaborative process, it is my goal to support my clients in gaining skills and techniques that they can utilize to meet their goals.
To facilitate this process, my approach is grounded in both Adlerian and person-centered therapies. With these as my base, I seek to understand my client’s individual background and how past relationships, experiences, and interactions with their families and others in the world inform current behaviors. Additionally, a person-centered approach focuses on genuineness, warmth, empathy, unconditional acceptance, and respect for the client. The goal of this approach is to provide a safe and trusting setting where my clients can use self-exploration and become aware of blocks to growth. Combining these approaches allows clients to better understand themselves while considering the social and cultural environments in which they are embedded. In addition to these approaches, I also use techniques and interventions from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, expressive arts, play therapy, and mindfulness.
I truly enjoy being able to work with individuals that are at different ages and stages as it helps me gain insight into what it means to be human and the diverse processes that we each go through and pushes me to continue to seek knowledge in an array of areas. In addition to a wide array of counseling knowledge, have specific training in the areas of Child-Centered play therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), used in the treatment of trauma, and perinatal mood disorders.
My goal as a counselor is to create an authentic, collaborative relationship in which the people I meet with feel safe so that they can heal, grow, and find their authentic selves.
