What does a first session with you look like?
My first sessions are like going to lunch with someone. You know the type of conversations you would have, the type of environment you would be in, and the type of food you eat will help the individual be engaging and feel safe.
Is there any research-based work you’ve done that you found particularly exciting, and how has that informed your practice today?
I am a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist with a heavy influence in Solution-Focused and Positive Therapy. The brain is an amazing organism, it helps is interpret the world, deal with stressors and traumas, and positive experiences and relationships with others. If one can change the mind-scape from a negative to a positive perspective, through a combination of positive talk and hopefulness, one can change the way they think about the world, hence change the way they feel and behavior.
If you could pick one movie or book that influenced your approach to therapy, what would it be and why?
I would say, "Where the Wild Things Are", by Maurice Sendak. This books exemplifies how having an imagination and hopefulness to see the word through a different lens as a child, leans towards great self-exploration. I find this to be true in therapy. As our childhoods mold us all aspects of are lives, therapy can provide support to a individual to use those childhood experiences to make positive change in one's life.
Specialties
Adolescent mental health
Adolescent mental health focuses on adolescent-specific experiences including physical and cognitive development, social and environmental factors, sex, sexual identification and orientation, emotional processing, and substance use. Given the influence that parents/guardians have on adolescents, home life is a particularly important consideration.
Child mental health
Children can be impacted by things like anxiety, depression, ADHD and more. However, they can be difficult to identify because kids aren’t always able to communicate effectively. Untreated, child mental health issues can have long-term effects.
Family issues
Familial relationships can be the source of stress and emotional pain, even in the healthiest of situations. Painful interactions can range from irritation to resentment and lead to feelings of guilt, disappointment, and anger.
General Expertise
Depression
Depression often causes people to feel sad, empty, or hopeless, and can cause a lack of interest in life. It can also affect a person's thinking patterns and physical health.
Anxiety
Anxiety can mean nervousness, worry, or self-doubt. Anxiety disorder is a mental health disorder that entails excessive, repeated bouts of worry, anxiety, and/or fear.
Race & Cultural Identity
Challenges around race and cultural identity vary enormously, including issues related to discrimination, racism, and intergenerational trauma.
ADHD
ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) causes a hard time focusing attention and controlling restless or impulsive behavior. People with ADHD might have emotional outbursts, be forgetful, and/or find it difficult to stay organized.
Abuse/Survivors of abuse
Abuse includes any significant mistreatment along the lines of psychical, emotional, sexual, verbal, and neglect. Survivors of abuse may experience negative thoughts and feelings, flashbacks, distrust of others, social withdrawal, self-harm, and increased likelihood of developing mental health and substance abuse issues.
Fees
$150
First Session
$150
Family Therapy
$150
Couples Therapy
$150
Individual Therapy
Types of Therapy
Family Session
Group Session
Individual Session
Couples Session
Clientele
Parents
Young Adults (18-24)
Adults (25-65)
Seniors (65+)
Children (5-12)
Adolescents (13-17)
Treatment Approaches / Modalities
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Attachment-Based Therapy
Family Systems Therapy
Marriage and Family Therapy
Narrative Therapy
Structural Family Therapy
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy
Training / Certifications
Florida Marriage and Family Therapist, #3592
Child-Parent Psychotherapy National Certification
Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavior Therapy National Certification
TEACCH FUNCTIONING Autism/Asperger Certification
Licensure
FL, LMFT, 3592
Education
Florida State University, Tallahassee, Fl, Masters in Child, Family and Consumer Sciences with an emphasis in Family Relations and Child Development
Work History
• Individual Therapy• Family Therapy• Couple Therapy• Co-Parenting• Domestic Violence Psychoeducation • Domestic Violence Effects on Parenting Young Children • Substance Use Education• Sexual Abuse and Trauma• Batterers Intervention• LGBTQAI+ • Therapeutic Supervised Visitation • Grief Counseling• Child-Parenting Psychotherapy; National Certification• Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavior Therapy; National Certification• Well versed in therapeutic evidence modalities facilitated in the therapeutic process; Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Solution Focused Therapy and Strategic Therapy • Provide Employment Assistance Program Counseling: Individual, Couple and Family• Collaborate and Coordinate with key stakeholder; Child Protection Investigation, Dependency Case Management, Mental Health Agencies, Agency for Persons with Disabilities, and individual licensed professional providing services outside the scope of practice;• Provided Community Based Therapy to Children (ages 3 – 18)• Care Coordinator for Early Childhood Court (ECC); ages 0-3
Location
820 East Park Ave, Suite F 100, Tallahassee, 32301, FL