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I believe it can be helpful for potential clients to know about their therapist’s background as both a therapist and a person. In that vein, I want to share the following with you about my own journey and my approach to therapy.

My approach as a therapist is rooted in empathy and understanding, and I believe in the power of encouraging clients to share their narratives without judgment or assumptions. I work to see the world through my clients' eyes, recognizing their inherent strengths, and validating their unique experiences, while also offering different perspectives when useful. I believe that our narratives about ourselves are deeply impactful and so I work to help clients find a way of looking at themselves that opens up a sense of possibility and self-compassion instead of identifying themselves too closely with pathology. After building a new and more liberatory narrative, my clients and I identify their values, goals and dreams, and then we get to work finding opportunities for action and tools that will support them in achieving their aims and breathing life into their new narrative.

I came to realize the power and beauty of therapy through three experiences.  The first was  when I entered family therapy at 14 years old, following my mother’s death, and my family learned to grieve and express our pain and to communicate more effectively.  Secondly, after I struggled with anxiety in my 20s as I entered the teaching profession (I taught in Berkeley’s public schools for 5 years), I sought therapy to manage the stress and to learn to deal with a perfectionist streak that was hampering my ability to function well. My last experience with therapy was after I became ill with a chronic illness (MECFS) which has no truly effective treatment, and for which I needed to grieve and shift some of my life expectations.

I have found therapy a transformative experience that has helped me to heal, grow, and explore new possibilities for how to live my life and carry out my values.  I hope you are able to have a similarly powerful experience.  And I see my profound responsibility as your therapist as supporting you to have a good experience and helping you get the most out of your experience.  I was once that client who stepped into a therapist’s office with considerable anxiety at what I might find, and I want to tell you that it’s a beautiful and powerful step to take when you seek someone to help you become who you want to be in this life, and I will do everything I can to honor and support you in that step if you choose to work with me.