Services
About My Clients
Many of the folks I work with experience a deep sense of shame, going through life feeling like they have to hide their true selves from others (and maybe themselves). Often, painful past experiences have taught them they aren’t good enough, must strive for perfection, or that they’re just too hard to love. Sometimes these experiences show up as hopelessness, depression, anxiety, and/or trauma symptoms. Clients often find me during periods of transition when it all feels like too much to bear.
My Background and Approach
I’m here to help you uncover your values, the things that help you build the life you want to live. You’re the expert on your life, and I can support you in identifying your inherent strengths, connecting with your authentic self, and learning coping skills. I want to help you find joy and meaning in your story as you learn to navigate the process of being human. I’m skilled at helping clients examine influences from family, community, and society at large, identifying ways that systemic oppression impacts quality of life and challenging internalized oppression to promote healing. While I enjoy working with a wide range of clients, I’m particularly skilled at working with those experiencing shame, depression, trauma, anxiety, and transitions, as well as exploring identity and relationships (including identifying and setting boundaries and improving communication). I also help with emotion regulation, especially for those who oscillate between numbness and overwhelming emotions.
My Personal Beliefs and Interests
I am an anti-oppression, LGBTQIA+ affirmative, Health at Every Size (HAES) practitioner, and advocacy is a core part of my identity. I have worked with individuals from a variety of racial, ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds. I approach therapy from a position of cultural humility, meaning that I come to our work with curiosity, centering your values in our work together. I take a holistic approach to wellbeing, seeing you as a whole person and your health as more than just the absence of symptoms. I am passionate about meeting people where they are, and I’m skilled at identifying starting points and goals along your path of personal growth and healing. I’m a former public-school teacher with an MA in Family Social Science and an MA in Counseling and Student Personnel Psychology from the University of Minnesota. In my downtime, I enjoy spending time with my spouse and our three dogs, reading, doing puzzles, listening to podcasts, and watching movies and shows.