Feminist Therapy

Feminist therapy isn't just for women! It is a modality that focuses on client issues through the lens of the client's experience and context, both personal and social/political/cultural. Diverse perspectives are encouraged/supported and the therapy relationship is more egalitarian to minimize the power differential. In other words, I work alongside my clients to help them work through their difficulties in a strengths-based way.

I am rooted in anti-oppression as the lens through which we can make sense of many of our struggles. I believe in depathologizing mental illness by correctly identifying external sources of distress rather than seeing your pain as a personal problem. I have and continue to educate myself on systemic and interpersonal oppression in order to better understand the experiences of marginalized clients and to prevent harming my clients through my ignorance.

We are all connected to one another other, and we try to live a liberated life within hidden systems of inequity. Whether you consider yourself to be privileged or marginalized, the reality is we are all a part of oppressive structures we were born into, and this effects our ability to thrive. What can we do about this? Feminist therapy recognizes systems of power, and the harm they cause, centering transparency, empowerment, and the importance of the interpersonal as paths to freedom.

"Feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression"--(bell hooks). Feminist therapy is used as a lens to investigate and explore how society is built for white, cis-het (cisgender/heterosexual), assigned male at birth (AMAB) people and the subsequent ramifications and consequences for others who fall out of those parameters. Intersectionality, within feminism, looks at the way differing inequalities create intersecting discrimination and inequity.

We are all connected to one another other, and we strive to live a liberated life within hidden systems of inequity. Whether you consider yourself to be privileged or marginalized, the reality is we are all a part of oppressive structures we were born into, and this effects our ability to thrive. What can we do about this? Feminist therapy recognizes systems of power, and the harm they cause, centering transparency, empowerment, and the importance of the interpersonal as paths to freedom.

I work from a feminist and social justice framework to hold clients up as the expert in their own experience and to acknowledge the relevance of social, environmental, and generational context.

A feminist approach to therapy enables an egalitarian relationship between therapist and client, where the client is the expert in the room and we collaborate on treatment. My research in graduate school was on a feminist approach to working with survivors of childhood sexual abuse. As a therapist, I sought out a feminist supervisor and strive to learn as much from her as I can.

Because of my social work education and background, I have an extensive background in feminist therapy. Feminist therapy is intersectional and systemic, which is why it's my favorite modality.

I am a big supporter of women, and I firmly believe in the power of helping them connect with themselves and their voices and making themselves heard. I am trained in women's issues and feminist psychotherapy, and am passionate about walking with women through the journey of dismantling patriarchy and questioning beliefs that continue to make us feel we need to conform with the status quo and stay quiet.

You are the expert of yourself; I'm here to support you with my training and skills to assist you in uncovering the answers within. I use an intersectional approach and recognize there are many factors and layers to your life, and when we can examine all aspects of our identity we move toward accepting ourselves as we are. I am committed to being an inclusive, anti-racist practitioner and do not shy away from discussing relevant social justice topics as they may arise within therapy.

The Feminist perspective in counseling focuses on the importance of empowerment, and awareness of systems of oppression that impact people of all genders. What you can expect here is to be treated with respect and to have the whole person that you are, all your identities and lived experience validated and welcomed in counseling. You can expect that we can talk about the differences between our identities and lived experiences in a safe and productive way.

As a feminist therapist, I strive for therapy relationships that are as egalitarian as possible while still acknowledging power differences inherent in therapy. We will pay attention to your unique identity while working to understand how oppression you have experienced has affected your thoughts, feelings and ideas about yourself. Feminist therapy is for everyone -- people of any gender, race, sexual orientation, age, or religion.

I view therapy as a space of mutual learning and understand that you will enter the therapeutic relationship with your own values, beliefs, and worldview. My goal is to empower you to challenge narratives about your reproductive and sexual history that have created feelings of shame, disconnection, and anxiety. We will work together to identify perspectives that have kept you feeling stuck and build new insights that empower you to move forward in a way that is authentic to you.

My approach is strongly informed by a critical feminist, social justice approach to individual and relationship therapy, examining the impact of structural and systemic oppression on our sense of self, sense of belonging, and our connections to our values and sense of purpose in our lives.

Our society was founded by and built for Straight, White, Christian, Men. Our society is slowly evolving to be more inclusive of women, POC, people with disabilities, the LGBTQ+ community, and other marginalized populations. Empowering women involves deconstructing the toxic patriarchal culture that oppresses those that threaten the beneficiaries. Sessions are structured to identify personal strengths and build assertiveness by confronting social norms and gender roles.

I practice from an intersectional feminist lens, meaning that I take into account how all the parts of your identity (race, sexual orientation, size, faith, roles you occupy, etc.) impact your individual experience of being a woman, including your experiences of oppression. I consider you the expert on you, and me the expert on psychology, and together we partner to combine our expertise in the service of your goals. I seek to empower you to make your own best decisions according to your values.

My core values are centered in feminist, anti-oppression ideals (the type of feminism that includes and honors women of color and trans folks). It means every day, I work with folks like you to unlearn socialization of gender, sexuality, and so many other qualities to find out who you really are, or at least who you want to be today. In therapy, we will talk about and examine how this impacts your relationships, sense of worth, and other ways of being in the world.