How I can help…

I use empathy and compassion to help you develop a new narrative on your life. One that allows for the gray area to emerge and possibilities to unfold. I want to help you put the pieces of the puzzle together to make a better story that feels authentic, meaningful, and hopeful. One that captures the wholeness of you- not only the painful parts, or even only the idealized parts, but the REAL parts. My style is active. I will sit in the trenches with you to figure out what you’re feeling, what you want to do with those feelings, and how to become the best version of you possible. I will listen and I will empathize with you. I will not place “value statements” on how you feel. While I will never tell you what to do or give you “advice,” I will sometimes challenge you to see a different side of the story to create a greater vision for your future. I use humor, believe that laughter is healing, and often use corny metaphors to get my point across (to which you are very much allowed to give me the side-eye).

My goal is to help you approach, not avoid, those pesky feelings. What once felt impossible will have possible solutions. And feelings that once felt so confusing and overwhelming can feel like helpful pieces of data that make your life more complete rather than overpowering and uncontrollable. Even more exciting is the emergence of “positive” emotions—feeling the joy, enthusiasm, and happiness that you deserve.

People I work well with:

• people who don’t know how to sort through their feelings, and sometimes don’t even have the words to describe them
• people who use avoidance or dissociation to cope, but who also know that that’s not the most adaptive strategy
• people who have chronic problems with relationships (starting, keeping, or even ending them)
• people who catch themselves in a panic or shutting off from themselves and the world and don’t know how they got there (i.e., seemingly go from 0-60)
• people who see things in the “black and white” despite knowing there has to be a middle ground
• people who may be children of alcoholics or children of parents with personality disorders (Borderline PD, Narcissistic PD, etc)
• people who are caretakers and often put themselves way last over everyone and everything else (even the cat!)
• people who may relate to the term “codependent”
  people whose childhoods were at best, confusing– at worst, traumatic