My favorite and most frequent comment from clients has been “This is so different from what people told me therapy would be like.” I am not the therapist as seen on TV or in the movies. I am the therapist who is a real person in real life that talks to you like a real person in real life. I compete in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, I collect Pokémon cards, and play guitar (poorly) in a pop punk band for fun.

Have you ever wondered “do I really need therapy?” Maybe you are the person who never thought they would want to go to therapy but here you are. Maybe you have been to therapy before, but you felt judged or condescended to. Perhaps you were worried about what your therapist was thinking. A session with me will feel different from the average clinical experience because it will feel safe and professional but informal and not at all stuffy. Expect that you may laugh (because it is okay to do in therapy), you may cry (because it is okay to do in therapy), and you may interact with anger, sadness, and self-doubt (because it is okay to do in therapy!). I am different, but I will let you decide for yourself.

I look at you as the expert of your own life. I see clients between the ages of 14 and 50.  I believe that to heal from trauma, create emotional and behavioral change, or overcome anxiety and depression, that we must interact with every part of ourselves but that interacting with every part of ourselves isn’t always an easy thing. Sometimes the dialogue that we have with ourselves is unpleasant or painful. Sometimes there are pieces of ourselves that are easier to ignore altogether. I use an array of evidence-based practices grounded in data-driven science such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Narrative Therapy, and Motivational Interviewing, and other trauma informed therapeutic techniques in order to help you access the tools necessary to interact positively with your whole self.

My education background includes a BS in Behavioral Science from Minnesota State University – Mankato, and a Master’s Degree in Clinical Social Work from Saint Catherine University in Saint Paul where I earned my LGSW. My work experience includes 7 years of therapeutic trauma and treatment work with incarcerated or corrections involved individuals who have been adjudicated of high level felony offenses. If there is anything I have learned from these experiences, it is that people are not defined by the worst decisions that they have ever made. Everyone can grow. Everyone can change their mindset and their behavior. Everyone can heal. I have seen it with my own eyes. Currently, I am studying Jiu Jitsu as a form of play therapy and the effect it can have on adults who have experienced trauma.

Please feel invited to see me in session! I look forward to meeting you.