My goal is to help clients to create lives that express who they truly are. Recent discoveries in neuroscience show that psychotherapy actually can rewire the human brain - a process that can heal old wounds. These changes come from experiencing ourselves in new ways within the relationship we build with the therapist. This may mean rediscovering parts of ourselves we disowned as children in order to stay connected to our caregivers; learning new strategies and coping skills to handle distress; learning how to create healthier relationships; or gaining our own direct experience of the world, perhaps for the first time. I believe clients can make these changes only in a relationship that feels secure and non-judgmental. And because clients are the experts in their own lives, I see our work together as a respectful collaboration.
I address issues of grief and loss, trauma and abuse, problematic relationships, multicultural concerns, anxiety and depression, and more. I also offer support groups, which can help clients identify patterns they developed in their families of origin that may not be serving them well in their adult lives. I draw from my varied background as a teaching assistant in English Literature at the University of Washington, as a journalist at Newsweek Magazine and The Seattle Weekly, and as the writer and Marketing Director at The Northwest School. And parenting three children, including twins, has given me a deep interest in issues of attachment, identity and role change, and perinatal loss.
Above all, I see the work clients and therapists do together as a search for and celebration of the deep selves within us all. Coming to rest on the true ground of our being - those amazing moments when something inside says, “Yes, this is me!” - is the most powerful source of healing and growth that I know.