I am a Licensed Marriage & Family therapist (Califoria and New Mexico) currently seeing clients in my office in Los Gatos, CA, and/or remotely via secure telehealth (Zoom). I have worked with adults, children, couples and families for over 10 years, and am a Clinical Supervisor for therapists-in-training at CHAC, a community mental health agency, in Mountain View, CA.
I primarily work with individual adults. Treatment specialties and areas of ongoing study include:
Recovery from the long-term consequences of Childhood Trauma, Loneliness and Emotional Neglect
Developmental Trauma and Complex PTSD
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) Skills Training
Therapy For Depression And Anxiety
Enhancing Self-Esteem and Confidence
Relationship & Interpersonal Challenges
Work And Career Issues
Mindfulness-Based Stress Management
Meaning of Life Issues
Second Half of Life and Retirement Counseling
MY APPROACH
My training and practice includes attention to the emotional, mental, physical and spiritual aspects of life. I believe that each of these facets have a powerful impact on our happiness and well-being.
I take an engaged and collaborative approach with clients that honors the unique experience of each person.
Together, we will get curious, listen deeply, reflect, and explore - with the goal of deepening your self-understanding and self-awareness, and more reliable access to your own inner wisdom. Initially we may address your most immediate concerns, helping to relieve current painful emotions, behaviors and relationship stress. Long-term wellbeing will be sustained with a focus on core change and depth work and through expanding your repertoire of life skillsand healing practices.
I draw from a number of time-tested psychotherapeutic modalities. My own personal growth and professional studies are an important aspect of my practice, and I am continually updating my knowledge and experience in the field.
Currently, my work with clients is informed by the following theories and therapies, any number of which may come into play during our session:
Attachment Theory :: exploring the nature of one’s relationship with early caregivers and how it shows up in our current ways of relating to others.
Mindfulness :: Mindfulness has been defined as “paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally.” The practice of mindfulness offers us a powerful antidote to the “trance” of habitual thoughts and feelings and provides a clear path to healing self-awareness.
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) Skills Training :: DBT skills are an effective set of tools designed to help us develop mindfulness, emotional wisdom and improved interpersonal skills. I teach these in group settings as well as to individual clients.
Psychodynamic Therapy :: providing insight into unconscious thoughts and feelings that influence your moods, relationships and self-defeating behaviors.
Emotion-Focused and Somatic Therapies :: our bodies and minds are profoundly intertwined. It makes sense, therefore, to access and interpret the messages our body has to share through its gestures, emotions and symptoms.
Journal-Writing and Creative Expressive Arts :: Writing and art providerich avenues into the deeper aspects of our psyche, and help us to contact thoughts and feelings we otherwise would not be aware of.