“We are here to be eccentric, different, perhaps strange, perhaps merely to add our small piece, our little chunky, chunky selves, to the great mosaic of being. As the gods intended, we are here to become more and more ourselves.”

— James Hollis

My Background & Credentials

I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) with a Masters in Social Work (MSW) from the University of Washington School of Social Work. Prior to receiving my degree in 2008, I spent over a decade in union organizing, prison reform, and racial justice work. I taught ESL, spent time in Latin America doing international solidarity and also spent many years working in the fields of domestic violence, sexual assault, queer youth advocacy and foster care counseling and support. This early work in diverse spaces and focused on community empowerment and resilience still informs my work today.

I launched my private practice in 2008.

My approach to therapy is also influenced by the late Milton Erickson and his student Stephen Gilligan, PhD. Erickson believed that the unconscious (the body, felt sense, cosmic consciousness) held within it endless possibilities. He taught that within any negative symptom lies the solution and therefor to honor the suffering that calls our attention. Gilligan carries Erickson’s work into the present through what he calls Generative Change. This orientation speaks to me just as social work did with an emphasis on integrating various models as is needed, focusing on our resilience, and emphasizing the innate power we all have to shape and reshape our experience.

Another mentor to me is Dr. Leticia Nieto who is the creator of the diversity curriculum that I teach called Beyond Inclusion, Beyond Empowerment. Being a student of hers and then co-author of her book and trainer of her curriculum has inspired me to incorporate the lens of injustice and empowerment into my work as a therapist. She is a creative, soulful healer and teacher and introduced me to Jungian psychology and experiential healing forms like psychodrama.

My office space is housed in a beautiful old craftsman originally named The Fairmount in West Seattle. The environment is comfortable and has an aged and lived in feel to it.

I am currently a student at Peter Levine’s Somatic Experiencing institute. I have advanced training in Gottman and Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT) for couples. Psychodynamic therapy, attachment, transpersonal psychology, developmental psychology, body awareness and mindfulness are core to my work with individuals and relationships and I have extensive education in these areas as well.

my style and process

Individual Therapy

With a mix of warmth, openness, and structure, I support clients to find their way to life balance. My approach is experiential meaning we focus on the here and now and what is happening experientially as we explore a topic or issue that you bring. This might include attention to the breath, taking hints from the body, or noticing our patterns with each other.

Together we will be curious about your deepest intentions for your life. This involves both listening well to your ways of knowing and drawing on models, resources and processes that support that. I am very interactive in style and unafraid to get in there and offer insights, ideas, questions and reflections that might be of use to you.

Like most therapists, I believe that relationship is a site for incredible joy, transformation and discovery. The safety and honesty of our relationship will be foundational and we will check in throughout to see how the work is feeling for you.

Relationship Therapy

In relationship therapy, I'll meet you where you're at. Together, we’ll establish a sense of where you want most for your relationship. I tend to weave in family of origin and early attachment experience, processes that support deeper communication, awareness of defense mechanisms and tools for how lean into the softer underbelly of intimate conversation.

I believe that the places we get stuck in with our loved ones is also a place of incredible potential. The work has the potential for deeper self-love, growth and closer connection to each other. Relationship work can be mysterious and organic in nature. Yet, contained with specific goals, skills development, tools, problem solving and structured processes, it can be incredibly powerful and life affirming.

Grounded in social consciousness.

An important lens that I utilize throughout my work as a therapist is the awareness of, and contending with, social inequity. This could be as straightforward as naming how racism, homophobia, class or gender might be impacting your process. It may be exploring power dynamics as they relates to identity differences between couples. Having a close eye on my own areas of privilege can be a relevant part of the process as well. In so many different ways, the open and honest dialogue about oppression and difference is fundamental to building a trusting and safe therapeutic space in which to do this work.