Work With Me

Authentic and caring relationships can be a vehicle for change. AEDP is a relational therapy that focuses on creating a space where clients can feel valued, nurtured, and cared for. The therapist is affirming, attuned, engaged, and understanding of what clients have experienced. Through this healing relationship, the adaptive defenses that we all wear in daily life are no longer needed and we can safely explore emotions which have previously felt overwhelming or too scary to face. Often, experiencing feelings in the company of a caring other is a new, positive experience. Through processing previously avoided feelings and material, transformation and growth can occur.

I am a 200-hr Certified Yoga Teacher. I completed my training at Kripalu Yoga Center in 2009. I also lived at Kripalu for 3 months in 2003 extensively studying yoga, compassion, and mindfulness. I am currently in a two year IMTA-accredited mindfulness meditation teacher training with clinical psychologists Jack Kornfield, Ph.D. and Tara Brach, Ph.D.

Therapy with me is backed by research and the science of neuroplasticity. Our brain development can change throughout our entire lifespan. I have a deep fascination with the body and nervous system, the neurochemistry of early trauma, and rebuilding developmental platforms through regulation to build a less stress-oriented system. We can purposely shape our brain through practice so that we can find greater joy and presence in our lives. It's never too late to change- we can sculpt new, healthy pathways in the brain and prune away old, unhealthy ones that no longer serve us (neuronal pruning). Change does require the clarity to know what you are seeking more of in your life (ex. gratitude, self-compassion, happiness, self-worth, to be more present, etc) and then repeated practice of taking in these feelings and experiences. Qualities of mindfulness include: attention, intention, and an attitude of kindness towards oneself. When we don't practice certain thoughts, feelings, or behaviors, the brain doesn't fire the associated neurons and these parts of ourselves will literally wither away over time (why you can no longer remember how to play the instrument you played as a kid or how to calculate mathematical equations). Neural-pathways are like well traveled roads- the old pathways may include habits that we have practiced for decades (persistent negative beliefs about ourselves, automatic emotional reactions, behaviors that aren't supportive to us). Understanding the power of mindfulness and neuroplasticity literally gives us the opportunity to consciously carve out new neural pathways so that we can begin to feel better about ourselves, become more present, and appreciate our lives.

“Safety IS the treatment. -- Stephen W Porges, 2016”. From the moment we are born, we are on a journey to feel safe in our bodies, in our environments, and in our relationships with others. We are wired to connect with other humans, yet it does not always feel safe to do that. The autonomic nervous system is our own surveillance system, constantly assessing for safety and risk. It is listening and attuning moment by moment to what is happening in and around our bodies, and in the connections we have to others. Stephen Porges coined the term “neuroception”, which describes the way our autonomic nervous system scans for cues of safety, danger, and life threat without involving the thinking parts of our brain. If we sense a lack of safety (words, tone, environment, etc), our nervous systems will react to keep us safe (through our sympathetic system of flight or fight, through the dorsal collapse of shut down, or a freeze response). Because we as humans create meaning from our actions and life experience, what begins as the experience of neuroception ends up creating thoughts, beliefs, stories, and our sense of self. When we’ve experienced trauma, our neuroception can sometimes sense safety where there is not actually safety, or threat where there is not actually threat. Many symptoms such as depression, anxiety, unhelpful behaviors or coping strategies can really be traced to a nervous system that is stuck in a state of dysregulation. Through our relationship, your nervous system is offered the opportunity: to coregulate and self-regulate with ease; to move out of the outdated, habitual (often unconscious) strategies to protect; to gain more understanding and self-compassion of why you protected in the ways you did; and to discover new, updated ways of connecting and feeling safety in the world. You can experience profound changes as you learn to be more regulated and present in your body.

EMDR is an evidence-based psychotherapy that allows people to process and heal symptoms that are the result of traumatic or distressing life experiences. Bilateral stimulation of the brain (either by moving eyes side to side, or by tone or touch) are used as we target a memory or belief that is distressing. I will ask you to hold different aspects of that event in mind while we use the bilateral stimulation. Unlike talk therapy, the insights you can gain in EMDR therapy result not so much from clinician interpretation, but from your own insight and emotional process. I suggest and use EMDR when trauma or negative beliefs are impacting your health or progress in life. We can also use this technique to strengthen positive feelings about yourself, practice and enhance the effects of calming meditations, and to get unstuck from limiting beliefs, anxieties, or feelings.

Gestalt Therapy is a creative, mindfulness based psychotherapy focused on the therapist-client relationship. The key elements of Gestalt Therapy includes assisting clients to: develop their own self-awareness of how they are in the present moment, working through unresolved business in order to live in the here and now (versus dwelling on the past and having regrets/worries/unresolved business), notice how we break or avoid connection in relationships (by using therapist/client relationship as a tool), accepting feelings, parts work (noticing or having a dialogue between opposing opinions/attitudes in yourself), awareness of physical sensations, and locating where emotions lie in the body. Gestalt Therapy is interpersonal, empowers connection and change, and has the goal of creating more aliveness.

ACT focuses on a practice of learning to tolerate and sit with rather than avoid thoughts, feelings, memories, sensations, behaviors, and situations that are unpleasant. We notice the present moment with curiosity and I support you to move in the direction of what is most important to you. We will discuss: What do you care about most in your life? What is getting in the way of you achieving these things? The more you can practice approaching the things that make you anxious and scared, the easier it gets. By identifying and clarifying personal values, you can be more conscious about the steps that you are taking in your life, act in accordance to what you want and what is important to you, and find more meaning in your life. Your relationships begin to change as you are more clear.

EFT works to create more secure, lasting bonds between couples and family members with the goal of increasing closeness, understanding, and connection. We explore the "dance" or pattern that tends to play out in daily life. Beneath the surface, every couple has their own emotional responses and insecurities. Partners often report wondering “Do you really love me?” “Am I important to you?” “Are you committed to our relationship?” “Can I trust you?”, etc. EFT helps couples address these insecurities so that they can learn to interact with their romantic partners in a more responsive, loving, connected manner. By sharing these vulnerabilities openly in a safe space, there is increased understanding and empathy about "the pattern" and about what is going on for each partner beneath the surface.