Areas of Emphasis
I have learned from many great therapy giants and have developed a deep respect for existential psychotherapy in particular. My own interpretation of the great psychological theorists, however, seeks to honor the unique battle each client must fight by guiding them to listen to their bodies with compassion and curiosity. My goal is to help clients integrate their somatic (bodily) experiences so that positive cognitions finally ring true, and their bodies, minds, and spirits are truly healed and free from the past.
As a licensed professional counselor at Auburn Psychological Wellness Center (APWC), I have the following areas of emphasis:
- Trauma/PTSD
- Parenting/Children
- Couples/Families
- Spirituality
- Grief/Loss
- Groups – Psychoeducation and Process
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Addiction
What to Expect if we Work Together
I want to commend you for being brave and taking an important step toward living a better, healthier, and more intelligent life. There is some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that suffering is not always avoidable, which you probably already know. The good news, however, is that we can find healing.
People walk through life with unhealthy behavioral patterns, emotional injuries, unproductive thoughts, and other burdens. I help people release themselves from these burdens using primarily somatic techniques. Because of the way our brains and bodies work together, we store tension in our bodies from painful events. Walking through life, we will inevitably see, hear, smell, taste, and feel things that resemble the painful experience from the past. This is the definition of a trigger. When we are triggered, our bodies respond by sending danger signals to the brain that often put us in the fight-flight-freeze mode. Unfortunately, this response is maladaptive unless we are in a life threatening situation. My goal in therapy is to build a strong relationship of trust with you, help you understand what you are experiencing, and teach you how to discharge that tension. You can learn to heal yourself, build healthy boundaries, and develop coping skills to minimize the impact of future hurts.
My counseling style is characterized by the following approaches:
- EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
- Somatic Experiencing Exercises
- Brene Brown’s research on vulnerability
- TBRI (Trust Based Relational Intervention) techniques for parents/caregivers and children.
About Me
I am a Licensed Professional Counselor and have practiced in the field for about eight years. I received a Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Prior to joining APWC, I first worked for the Leeke Magee Counseling Center and then for the Children’s Bureau of New Orleans as a school counselor. There I utilized TBRI and treated traumatized children. When COVID-19 hit and schools shut down, most school clinicians lost their jobs. I started working as a residential treatment counselor for Avenues Recovery in Metairie, Louisiana. In that center, I treated clients who struggled with drug and alcohol addictions through individual and group counseling.
Helping clients learn how to heal themselves and live a whole-hearted life with courage and healthy boundaries is my passion. I am conducting informal research concerning the use of somatic exercises in group settings, and I have developed a technique for treating trauma in a more efficient and accelerated way. Currently, I am writing an article on the subject and hope to publish it in the near future.
In my spare time, I love watching detective shows with my husband, playing charades with friends, and singing karaoke songs from the musical Wicked. I also love going to the beach if I can get away. Fun facts about me: I was born in Europe, and I have trained in the Martial Arts style of Goshin Jitsu for 6 years (a Japanese self-defense style derived from Karate) … and my husband is a black belt in several different styles….. and he is also my Sensei 🙂