Areas of Expertise

Many of us have had experiences that left a lasting impression, sometimes powerful enough that it changes the way we feel about ourselves and others. These kinds of experiences can even change how we go about our day and the rules we live by. Often times, we don’t even realize these experience are traumatic. It is easy to think about some of our experiences and think, “well it wasn’t as bad as some other people’s experiences.” However, feelings and memories from these moments linger, affect our mood, how we feel about ourselves, how we feel about others, and we have a hard time understanding why we can’t get passed it. Trauma can show up in a lot of different ways and when you find yourself struggling to cope with something that happened, therapy can be a great place to sort it out and figure out how to move forward and feel better about ourselves.

We've all had moments of confusion, or conflict within our families and sometimes these moments happen often or can be very stressful. When these moments start to creep into our thoughts and change how we feel with our family, it can be overwhelming. I hear people share some of their family stresses and struggle to make the connection between their anxiety, low self-esteem, disappointment, or even loneliness to those stresses. This can easily make holidays hard, anniversaries or birthdays, new babies, weddings, etc. We might not even realize how stressed we may feel, especially if it is always been this way. I hear people share that their family is “complicated,” and it is just the way things were. It is helpful to explore those feelings and understand those feelings and how they affect us now. Family is complicated even in the best of times and talking about our family can give you a better understanding of your experience and your feelings.

Grief, whether expected or unexpected, can be a hugely challenging experience. Coping with loss and the absence of someone close to us can make it harder to manage day-to-day tasks. It is hard to go through the day and be surprised when we go to do something and remember the person is no longer with us.

Sometimes people experience a loss that doesn’t make sense, maybe even traumatic, such as sudden death or suicide. Everyone experiences grief differently and the loss of someone may be affecting you more than you realize. In this way, I can help you process the loss and begin to move forward with the grief, and find meaning in the face of loss.

Being a woman can be a lot of different things. As we grow and relationships change, jobs change, our bodies change. It isn’t unusual for a woman to “just keep going,” even when she really don’t feel like herself. The number of changes our bodies undergo from childhood through menopause can be hard to make sense of and harder to adjust to. And every change we experience can be affected by things like stress, relationships, and work, or our health. There is a lot about being a woman, that isn’t talked about, that has been normalized or dismissed. Sometimes it feels like being a woman means you have to work harder for someone to hear you, believe you, take you seriously, or understand what you are experiencing emotionally or physically, doesn’t make sense especially when what is happening doesn’t feel like you thought it would. I see women struggling to cope with the stress of life, being a mother, deciding whether to have children or not, dealing with changes related to perimenopause or menopause. I believe the support and acknowledgement of a woman in each of these places is part of how we find a place we are thriving.

When it comes to having a baby, there is a lot of information out there. No one really talks about what it is like trying to get pregnant, what happens if I get pregnant or don’t get pregnant. What happens after I have a baby?

How do you figure out how to take care of someone so small and take care of yourself? How do you deal with the what is happening in your body? Or what about your partner? What does it mean if you can’t stop thinking or worrying about the baby, if you’re irritated, overwhelmed, angry, or even just sad? Pregnancy and postpartum are times in your life where extra support can make a difference in you confidence in yourself and your new baby. There is no singular experience when it comes to becoming a mom and having a safe place to help you feel good about yourself and your baby is important.

The impact of a single diagnosis can be overwhelming and can completely change how you feel about yourself and what is happening. The first time you hear the word cancer, it can be a complete shock, not even make sense. There is so much uncertainty with a cancer diagnosis and so many questions. You even develop a whole new vocabulary when you get diagnosed. This can make it challenging to understand and prepare for what treatment looks like, your prognosis or surgery, your plan for other parts of your life like work and family. It can be even hard to think about what life may look like after all of this is finished. Drawing on my own experience as a survivor as well as additional training, I offer an understanding and a knowledge of what this journey can look like and help you begin to cope with what is happening right now and figure out what comes next.

ADHD is something that can be overlooked for many people, especially women. As professionals, we are just beginning to understand that and sometimes that makes it hard to feel like you can get an accurate diagnosis. I see a number of clients who have been in therapy because of anxiety or low self-esteem and in understanding their experience, it isn’t unusual they have been misdiagnosed, or misunderstood. ADHD can look like other things too, so it's important have a full understanding of a person, their experience, and their symptoms.

If you are someone who has been diagnosed later in life with ADHD, or you think you may have ADHD, finding a therapist who can help you figure it out can bring such relief. Sometimes, I see adults who realize what they notice in their child feels all too familiar. I often hear people complain about stress related to work, not feeling good enough, having low self-esteem, being overwhelmed with family, the noise or chatter in their head, and the anxiety in social settings and it has become normal in their life. An accurate diagnosis can make a difference. I have the training and experience to assess and diagnose someone hoping to find some answers and help them understand if it is really ADHD or if there is something else affecting their attention.