More ABOUT ME

My journey to becoming a psychotherapist started over 20 years ago, while working as a documentarian on the road with hundreds of Vietnam veterans crossing the country on motorcycle. It was my job to interview and help tell the individuals' stories of loss, anger, confusion and pain. This pilgrimage was one step on a unique healing journey for each vet, and I was so honored they were willing to open up to me, share their truths with me, their hurts and their hopes for the future. I was also incredibly moved to discover how much relief they felt in talking to me, in feeling connected, witnessed and joined. I knew I had found my calling and became hungry to learn more how to support, empower and counsel others. 

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During my studies, I also got married, had children, suffered through grief, found my footing through life-changing illness, and experienced some of the tremendous disruption, turmoil, surprise, love, disappointment, fear and hope we all experience as we navigate what it is to be human. I became passionately focused on not only how we live internally, but how we exist in relation to others. All of our emotions - from our earliest moments to our day-to-day experiences - are tied to how we existed & continue to exist in relationship:

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How we parent, how we were parented.

How we love, how we receive love.

What we need to say, but others can't seem to hear.

What we need to hear, but don't know how to get from our loved ones.

This passion for relationships led me to study at the Family Institute at Northwestern University, where I gained expertise in helping individuals, couples, and families find peace, connection, and resilience. I view challenges not as isolated issues but as part of the relational patterns that shape our lives. Therapy often involves healing from relationships that let us down or learning to reconnect with loved ones in new, meaningful ways. I encourage my clients to be vulnerable, take risks, and create the lives they desire.

I also did advanced training in positive psychology at Harvard, so that I could help equip clients with the tools to move into the more positive futures and relationships they want and deserve. I believe there is power in understanding the sources of our anger, anxiety & unhelpful patterns, but I also believe it is important to help clients rediscover their identities, strength & purpose. To choose what comes next.

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When not working, I can usually be found on a mountain, an airplane or a couch - hiking, going on adventures, or reading/movie-viewing/board-gaming with my family.