I have encountered many extremes of experience in my own life, leaving me open minded and flexible as a person and a therapist. I strive to listen for the unsayable and the unthinkable in experience because I believe this is key to liberating ourselves from stuck patterns.

In sessions, I bring empathic attention, continuous curiosity, and humor as we work together to build an understanding of your unique way of experiencing the world and the barriers you may face to accessing a sense of freedom and connection. While I am depth-oriented - meaning I typically do not focus on prescribing “methods” for treating surface-level symptoms, preferring to keep going until we can get to the root of the problem - I am also a straightforward person who will help you with problem-solving when the situation calls for it. Most of all, I view therapy as an opportunity to get to the heart of what you really want, through a collaborative and open investigation.

I hold a Masters degree in Integral Counseling Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies and am fully licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist with the California Board of Behavioral Sciences. I also hold a PhD in philosophy from the University of Oregon, where I studied issues of communication across differences, ethics, and embodiment.

My post-degree training and other influences include extensive clinical consultation and research in several schools of psychoanalytic theory; training in Emotionally Focused Therapy for couples; education in Internal Family Systems; education in a variety of trauma healing modalities including Somatic Experiencing; personal training in Zen meditation techniques; and my philosophical background including studying existential, humanistic, and phenomenological approaches to thinking about what it means to be a person in the world, in relation with others. 

Before working in private practice, I gained experience providing therapy in community mental health contexts including middle and high schools, in a police department, and on several crisis lines assisting individuals in life-threatening abusive relationships. I have also worked in the nonprofit sector for almost 15 years and act as a consultant assisting organizations that work with social challenges and the broader effects of trauma.