I am warm, nurturing and down-to-Earth. I believe building a trusting and transformative relationship is the foundation of doing meaningful work together, so we begin there. As our relationship develops, we may notice some of the patterns you have experienced in other relationships showing up in the therapy room between us. I believe it is helpful to work with this meta-awareness to heal relational trauma.

I am training in AEDP and well-versed in Attachment Theory and like to assist clients in discovering their attachment style and the impact it has on their relationships and mental health. Unfortunately, many people do not have a lot of securely-attached relationships in their lives. Our therapeutic relationship can provide an opportunity for you to practice this. For relationship therapy, I use a variety of approaches, including The Gottman Method.

Though I take my role as your therapist very seriously, I am playful and like to use humor when appropriate. I am also direct, but not-directive–meaning I won’t hesitate to share an opinion or experience with you if I think it is useful, but your choices will always be respected and honored.

Neurodivergence is not a disorder. I believe the labels of Autism, ADHD, and AuDHD represent common genetic variations in the human nervous system. We are just beginning to learn how prevalent these variations are and how differences in environment, like one’s trauma history, available support, gender, race, etc. can impact how they express their neurocomplexity.

For example, while many autistic people might struggle to understand social cues into adulthood. One who grew up in an abusive household where their survival depended upon being able to read the facial expressions of their parents to avoid pain, might develop that skillset out of necessity. However, experiencing that kind of trauma could also exacerbate other nuerocomplex traits such as sensitivity to sound and rejection.

Similarly, imagine two kids diagnosed with ADHD at a young age. One had parents and teachers who proactively supported them to understand their challenges and maximize their strengths to navigate the neurotypical-normative school system. While the other was just given medication without much explanation, labeled as “bad” or “lazy,” and bullied for their sometimes impulsive or awkward behaviors. These two children would have grown up to be very different adults.

Nuerocomplex people also possess abilities that nuero-normative people do not. In fact many of us are considered gifted. This giftedness is sometimes expressed through an intense and enduring focus on a specific topic or skill resulting in virtuoso abilities. And while having an ultra sensitive and interest-based nervous system can be so beneficial in this way, it can also make it very hard for neurocomplex people to handle the more mundane aspects of self-care and maintain the level of scheduled productivity that capitalism often demands.

For a variety of reasons, nuerocomplex people are more likely to experience debilitating levels of depression and anxiety, and are often misdiagnosed with things like OCD and Bipolar and thus offered treatments that don’t work for them.

They may also find themselves working with therapists who have no lived experience of this and/or are using outdated diagnostic models that pathologize instead of validate the uniqueness of their nervous system.

On the other hand, they might find themselves with an ADHD coach who only wants to sugarcoat their neurocomplexity as a superpower without also acknowledging how devastating ADHD and Autism can be to a person’s mental health, self-esteem, relationships, and financial stability. They might only receive advice on how to be more productive and to mask their true selves to become more socially-acceptable. While this can produce short term results, in the long term it often causes severe burnout and even self-hatred.

My neurocomplexity expresses as AuDHD, meaning I show some traits that are traditionally associated with Autism and some that are associated with ADHD. I love working with late-diagnosed and high-masking neurocomplex people, and those recovering from the trauma of being diagnosed and under-supported from a young age.

I believe self-assessment is valid, and can offer support to those looking to deepen their assessment and acceptance of their unique nervous system in a non-pathologizing and empowering way.

Our minds and our bodies are deeply woven together by our nervous system and senses. With a somatic approach, you will learn how to invoke states of consciousness that are mindful and meditative, rather than our status quo consciousness, which is more intellectual.

I will guide you in building these skills so you can better regulate your nervous system, deepen your self-awareness, and feel more embodied. We will explore your core wounds and past traumas from the bottom up with this approach by using present moment sensation and insight to guide our way.

Focusing on the body in this way can be challenging at first, especially for trauma survivors and intellectuals. However, with careful pacing and a trusting therapeutic relationship, it can be immensely healing and rewarding.

Some clients also find they enjoy incorporating guided meditations, breath work, sound therapy, essential oils, movement, art and sand tray exercises, or CranioSacral touch into our sessions. Just ask!

In depth work, we begin by talking about your childhood and early adulthood relationships and explore how those experiences may be impacting your life now.

Through this, we gain insight into which coping mechanisms you have developed in order to grapple with stress and painful emotions. Coping mechanisms include things like perfectionism, addictions, suppression and dissociation.

In this approach, instead of rushing to eliminate these behaviors or symptoms, we first explore the wisdom of how they developed to protect you. Discovering the root causes of your challenges can help resolve long-held pain and provide insight on how to evolve in a healthier direction. We also look closely at your unconscious behaviors and dreams, through Jungian archetypes , active imagination exercises, or IFS parts work.

I enjoy working through a terrapsychology lens. Terrapsychology is a more recent evolution of Ecotherapy. It focuses on developing a reciprocal relationship with nature to enrich one’s life and our environment. There are many ways we can incorporate this into our work together, the easiest being by meeting at a park for our sessions.

Sometimes, just the simple act of being outside can be immensely supportive to our mental health. I also resonate deeply with the work of Sophie Strand which focuses on the “intersection of spirituality, storytelling, and ecology.”

I work with clients of all faiths, as well as atheists. For me, spirituality is about developing a curiosity and sense of awe and acceptance towards life. I believe this stance can be very beneficial to people’s mental health, however few are taught how to cultivate it.

My parents told me at a young age that I could choose my own religion. As a result, I have explored many paths, including atheism. For the past 15 years, I have studied Kashmir Shaivism (similar to Tibetan Buddhism), as well as Neo Tantra and Neo Paganism.

Along the way, I have picked up a good amount of tools and concepts that can help people expand their perspective on life, and build upon their own unique spiritual and cultural strengths. If you are curious to explore this, I am happy to include it in our sessions.

Philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti once said, “It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” As I see it, our society is not particularly healthy and hasn’t been for some time, especially in how it oppresses so many categories of people and perpetuates systemic racism.

For far too long, many therapists have focused on diagnosing clients and quickly ridding them of their symptoms to return them to their jobs as productive "healthy" citizens as quickly as possible. This doesn’t promote deep or sustained healing. With this approach, clients might enjoy short-term relief, but their cycle of pain often recurs.

We currently face a multitude of existential risks as a society that are quite terrifying. I believe it is important to discuss the difficulties of existing under late-stage capitalism and climate change, while also co-creating anti-oppressive ways to cope and evolve in healthier and more just directions.

To work toward this, I believe therapists must acknowledge and strive to transcend the ugly truths of the racism in our field of study. It is also crucial that we help clients integrate the many layers of their social and cultural identities within the context of our current social conditions, including the power dynamics that exist between clients and therapists.

Psychology has traditionally been very focused on the individual, but this approach emphasizes the cultivation of connection with family and community. In these domains, I am most inspired by the work of Daniel Schmachtenberger, Gloria Anzaldúa, Leticia Nieto, Ignacio Martín-Baró, adrienne maree brown, Josh Schrei and Báyò Akómoláfé.

I have a love/hate relationship with traditional cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). On one hand, it can be very helpful to learn how to reframe painful thoughts that lead to harmful or unwanted behaviors, but sometimes it can encourage clients to over-intellectualize their issues, or even feel like they are gaslighting themselves.

I do, however, find a lot of value in the newer iterations of CBT, which are Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Both of these approaches combine the best parts of CBT with a large dose of mindfulness and a focus on learning to hold the paradox of both accepting painful emotions, while simultaneously working to change them.

I especially like ACT’s focus on increasing psychological flexibility, building upon one’s strengths, and discovering what one values most in life and making therapy goals that are aligned with those values. This approach includes a lot of skill building, including worksheets and homework, and often works well for people desiring a more structured approach to therapy.