ABOUT ME
I am a licensed mental health counselor specializing in individual, child and family therapy and maintain a private practice in Seattle, WA. I received a BA in Psychology from the University of Colorado and went on after graduating to work in social services, providing support to homeless adults suffering from chronic mental illness and often co-occurring substance abuse. I also worked with chronically mentally ill adults in group home settings. I then received a Masters degree from Seattle University in 1997 and have over 17 years experience as a clinician.
While earning my Masters degree in Psychology at Seattle University, I interned at First Place School, a school serving homeless children and their families. I provided individual and group therapy to the children and case management to their parents to help these families stabilize.
Following receiving my Masters degree, I went on to work in Community Mental health, serving children and families. I worked in a number of settings; a school based program for children with severe behavior problems, as a consultant to Head Start to address the mental health needs of pre-school children and in outpatient services; working with children in the foster care system and/or low income children in need of services.
After my second child, I went on to work in a private practice, where I had the flexibility to devote more time to raising my two boys, as well as to continue in the profession I love. I have been in private practice for the past 10 years where I have had the opportunity to work with a diverse population of clients; providing therapy to adults and to children facing a broad range of concerns and issues.
My work is influenced by a number of schools of thought. Existential-Humanistic, Mindfulness; Acceptance and Commitment therapy and Narrative therapy have special influence. I am continually engaged with educational opportunities and have special certifications in child mental health and EMDR, (a specialized therapy in processing trauma). However, my clients provide the richest learning; I am continually inspired by their honesty, desire to grow and the uniqueness of each person's journey.