Discover Your Path to Well-Being

Hi!

I’m curious. Who are you? Where did you come from? Where are you going? What do you want?

If you’re reading this, you’re likely considering counseling. Good for you! Engaging in counseling takes courage. Socrates, an ancient epic philosopher, said, “An unexamined life is not worth living.” So, weather you feel like your life is not worth examining or if you deeply value your life and want to examine it more, counseling can be a good place to discover more life.

Have you ever thought about why every good story or epic movie has a villain? It’s worth pondering. Do you feel like there is a villain or many villains in your life story? The environment, social stress, occupational stress, marital stress, parental stress, cyber stress, social media stress, a growing sense of malice in the world, political party stress, health stress, emotional stress, lack of meaning stress, the stress from violating one’s own values and ethics, the list of “villains” goes on. Indeed, folks often feel such distress in the face of these and other villains that people can begin to doubt they have what it takes to defeat these forces and enjoy a life worth living.

As your therapist, you might think of me more as a guide. A fellow human being who agrees with and joins you on your journey searching for clues and strategies to help you discover the life you are searching for.

I’ve been a practicing therapist with adult populations in community mental health settings for 10 years. One thing I have learned from the stories of folks from all walks of life is; all of us have dignity, beauty, and strength, even if it has been veiled, lost, stolen or forgotten. For many of the clients I have had the honor of working with, therapy was a process of finding, remembering, grieving, and re-claiming their original shimmering self which often becomes key to living a life worth living.

I love joining with clients in ways where they feel seen, heard, understood, and challenged. Effective therapy, therapy that includes both empathy and invitational challenge, most often results in clients feeling increasing joy, hope, sense of power, self-knowledge, self-compassion, and love. Then, these felt changes most often result in changed actions that lead to deeper purpose and meaning causing clients to enjoy their lives more. Instead of a downward spiral of negative emotions leading to anxiety and fragmentation, effective therapy reverses that spiral, empowering an upward spiral fueled by positive emotion and productive action.

Clients who value spiritual and religious meanings have been well supported in my therapy practice. One tool I offer clients for deeper self-exploration is the Enneagram; a dynamic spiritual tool for developing deeper self-knowledge and improving your relationship with yourself and with others.

I am trained in, and offer EMDR therapy (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) as an effective tool for processing and integrating trauma memory for select clients desiring this type of therapy intervention.

I also have a strong conviction, backed by solid scientific research, that nutrition plays a vital role in mental health and cognition, or how we think. When our bodies and organs are inflamed due to poor diet, it’s pretty hard to even want to think about your story, let alone try to do anything to change it. While I am not a nutrition specialist, I have some training and lots of experience with diet and mental heath. If we find that diet may be hindering your overall wellness, I have trained nutritionists that can join us in our work towards your mental health goals.

Practicing therapy is like practicing most things, it’s costly work, indeed some of the hardest work you may ever do, but the rewards are worth it, you‘re worth it! If you are ready for the adventure of engaging your story more deeply, I’d love to join you.

If you are an individual challenged in your ability to pay for counseling due to your circumstances, please ask about my needs-based sliding scale.