areas of specialty

Depression, anxiety, stress, life changes and relationship problems are the common issues that lead us to seek out therapy, and I enjoy supporting individuals in managing and understanding these challenges. In addition to this work, I specialize in working with trauma, spiritual exploration, and supporting individuals in the LGBTQIA+/Queer, ENM/poly, and sex work communities.

Trauma

Trauma is an experience that overwhelms our coping resources, leaving us vulnerable and challenged to find adaptive ways to survive. It is an experience of danger to our physical self, emotional self, cognitive self, spiritual self, and/or identity. It is your personal experience of feeling hurt, lost, scared, confused, disoriented, ungrounded, angry, or paralyzed to name a few.​

I have extensive experience working with survivors of trauma, specifically in the areas of sexual assault, child abuse and neglect, systemic oppression, and grief and loss.  I recognize how traumatic experiences affect everyone differently. There’s no scale of what makes something a trauma–it can be a “big” event, a series of repeated and compounding events, or the event may not even directly impact a person. But, the result changes someone’s understanding of who they are, their relationships with other people, and their sense of security in the world. Ultimately it can manifest as depression or anxiety.

In therapy, we will move at an intentional and mutually agreed upon pace that prioritizes safety. We will explore where you feel blocked or challenged and will work to create new patterns for creating safety. This can involve re-creating meaning, building new ways to manage emotions, exploring how traumatic memories are stored in your physical being, and connecting with and creating resources for support.

LGBTQIA+/Queer Identified Folks

As a member of and advocate for our community, I am passionate about working with individuals exploring or questioning their identity. I recognize the challenges of having identities that continue to fight for acceptance and equality, and I hold space in therapy for growth, anger, grief, and celebration.

Spiritual Exploration

Spirituality is not religion; spirituality is the search for identity, purpose and meaning. It is connection with something greater than the self. Spiritual exploration confronts questions like:

Why am I here?
What is my purpose?
How do I make sense of the world?

I don’t have answers to these questions; I can support you in exploring them while maintaining a sense of grounding and connection.

Ethically Non-Monogamous and Polyamorous Relationships ​

Your relationship dynamic is not problematic just because it’s non-traditional. However, it can have stressors and problems that would benefit from the support of a therapist. Navigating the dynamics of these relationships can be difficult and comes with different challenges: jealousy, time and resource management, anxiety, and external judgement. Whether this is a focus of therapy or the relationship landscape for whatever brings you in, my approach is one of non-judgement.

​Sex Workers

Sex work is a job that comes with a myriad of challenges and feeling safe disclosing your form of employment to a therapist should not be one of them. Therapy can involve strategizing ways to manage stigma and criminalization, the navigation of relationships, or general life stress/issues.