My approach
How I Work
I listen closely to the language you use to describe your life, the assumptions embedded in that language, and the places where your thinking has become tight or self-punishing.
I ask questions that slow things down rather than rush toward solutions. We stay with what doesn't resolve quickly, because that is often where something important begins to come into view.
Starting with Context
Most struggles make more sense in context: Family. Culture. Gender. Relationships. Life stage. The body you live in. The roles you've carried.
I ask:
How did this pattern develop?
What has it helped you survive?
What no longer reflects who you're becoming?
This creates space to approach change with curiosity, not judgment, and to honor what you've survived without staying defined by it.
Narrative Therapy
We live inside stories about who we are, what is expected of us, and what is possible. Many of those stories were handed to us long before we had the chance to examine them. In this work, we look closely at those stories.
Where did they come from?
Who do they serve?
Are they still yours to carry?
Problems are not your identity. They are experiences that can be understood, placed in context, and responded to differently. The shift from "this is who I am" to "this is what I've been carrying" is often where real movement begins.
Puzzle pieces
Holding it together
You've been holding it together, and something is starting to strain under the surface.
The old story no longer fits
You don't feel like yourself lately, and the old story no longer fits.
Emotions more intense
Your emotions feel more intense or less predictable than they used to.
EMDR
I am EMDRIA-certified and integrate EMDR in a way that respects pacing, consent, and interpretation.
EMDR helps the nervous system process experiences that remain emotionally or physiologically "stuck." It allows memories, sensations, and beliefs to shift without requiring you to relive events in detail or retell the story repeatedly.
Used within a Narrative framework, EMDR can loosen patterns that feel automatic or self-punishing so that new responses become possible.
When Coping Becomes the Problem
For many people I work with, the struggle isn't only the original pain. It's the coping patterns that developed around it.
Substances. Food. Control. Avoidance. Over-functioning. Emotional shutdown.
These patterns rarely appear without reason. They develop in response to pressure, trauma, loss, or experiences that had no other place to go. At some point the coping begins to cost more than it protects.
In therapy we look at these patterns with curiosity rather than judgment. What did they protect? What made them necessary? And what might become possible now?
I served as Clinical Director at an outpatient addiction treatment center and have spent more than a decade working with people navigating recovery, trauma, eating concerns, and major life transitions. That experience shapes how I hold complexity without reducing it to a diagnosis or a protocol.
Is This Right for You?
This approach is for people who value depth and reflection, want more than symptom management, and are ready to examine long-standing patterns without rushing.
If you are looking for highly structured, skills-based therapy or directive advice, this may not be the right direction.
You don't need to know exactly what you need yet. This is simply a place to start.