What was your path to becoming a therapist? What inspired you to choose this profession?
My path was a windy one, as most people's are. It was the work I was doing personally that led me to want to help others. As I learned and grew, I wanted to share the amazing experience with others. I was working for a large corporation at the time and wanted to do more. So I went back to school and it was the first time I started school and felt right at home immediately. I was in my 40's when I was finally able to fulfill this goal and I have never questioned my decision. It is an amazing feeling to help others find their path.
How do you determine therapy goals with clients? What does that process look like?
The client drives the process and goals tend to be fluid. Clients usually start with basic goals in mind: I want to feel better or I want to reduce my stress. As therapy progresses, so do the goals, usually getting more and more specific. As the client learns and grows, they will define the goals for themselves. I am there to guide and support them.
In what ways do your life philosophy and treatment philosophy overlap?
As therapy is based on trust and mutual respect, my philosophies have to be the same. If I was asking a client to do something that I don't believe in, they will know and this will break the trust. I practice mindfulness, breathing and honesty in my personal life and these are what I use to help my clients find their way too.
Specialties
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.
Stress
Distress stems from a subjective perception of something being unwanted, undesirable, or detrimental to your wellbeing. Excessive stress significantly impairs mental and physical health and is associated with many diseases and conditions.
Trauma
Trauma is the result of experiencing a perceived, extremely distressful event. Although the stress threshold for each person differs, meaning that each person considers and experiences trauma differently, it is an event that tops one’s threshold. It exceeds one’s ability to cope or emotionally process. Symptoms may include shock, anxiety, confusion, hopelessness, feeling disconnected, mood swings, nightmares, and intrusive thoughts.
Coping Skills
Coping skills are tools and techniques one can learn, practice, and use to handle difficult emotions, decrease stress, and establish or maintain a sense of internal order.
General Expertise
Work Stress
Workplace issues are a common source of stress and can include interpersonal conflict, communication problems, gossip, harassment, discrimination, low motivation and job satisfaction, performance issues, and poor job fit.
Loss/Grief
Grief is a reaction to an emotionally significant loss and often comes with symptoms of depression or anxiety. These symptoms can remain intense and last for a long time after a loss, making it difficult to move forward with a healthy lifestyle.
Social Anxiety
Social anxiety or social phobia is fear of social situations or a fear of interacting with people other than close friends and family. Social anxiety can be persistent, intense, and debilitating, greatly affecting daily life.
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
$100
First Session
$125
Family Therapy
$125
Couples Therapy
$100
Individual Therapy
Types of Therapy
Family Session
Couples Session
Individual Session
Clientele
Parents
Young Adults (18-24)
Adults (25-65)
Seniors (65+)
Adolescents (13-17)
Treatment Approaches / Modalities
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Mindfulness Practices
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)
Compassion-Focused Therapy
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Family Systems Therapy
Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy
Person-Centered Therapy
Psychoanalytic Therapy
Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy
Training / Certifications
FBA certified
Certified in Trauma Counseling
Bucks County Child/Family Services Enhancement Initiative
Licensure
PA, LPC, 011871
Education
Masters in Clinical and Counseling Psychology, Chestnut Hill College
Work History
Everyone can use an objective voice to help them work out whatever is going on in their lives. Sometimes relief can begin just by deciding that a little help won’t hurt. “Beneath every behavior there is a feeling. And beneath each feeling is a need. And when we meet that need rather than focus on the behavior, we begin to deal with the cause, not the symptom” (Ashleigh Warner). This is my philosophy for counseling. In my practice I concentrate on what is driving behaviors and teach coping skills to empower the person to help themselves.
Location
Remote Therapist, Horsham, 19044, PA