I grew up in Oakland, California and earned my bachelor’s degree from Mills College in 1988. I lived in the Sacramento area for over 30 years and relocated to the Sonoma Valley in 2021, although I still see clients at my office in Roseville.

After earning my degree, I worked in group homes for 20 years, providing therapy as a paraprofessional. Initially this was with emotionally disturbed boys, then I moved into juvenile sex offender treatment. I provided milieu therapy and worked my way up to becoming the assistant program director. In this role, I focused on staff training and development, ensuring all staff had the appropriate therapeutic tools to work with this difficult population. I also continued to provide direct services to the youth via group therapy.

I attended graduate school at Chapman University College in Sacramento, graduating with honors with my master’s degree in 2003, and got licensed in 2006.

I have worked in private practice since then, as well as working for a major medical group doing screening and substance use prevention with pregnant women.

In 2008 I became a clinical supervisor, and in 2010 co-founded a non-profit counseling agency, Hearts and Hands Counseling. I have been running this agency and providing clinical supervision since then.

I completed the year long process of becoming a California Association of Marriage and Family Therapy Certified Supervisor in 2012. This provides me with recognition of my advanced training in supervision and allows me to provide consultation to other supervisors.

I completed Basic Training (50 hours) in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy in 2015 and became EMDR Certified in 2020. I am currently a Consultant-In-Training, which allows me to provide consultation to other clinicians who are engaged in EMDR and/or are pursuing EMDR Certification.

I was an adjunct professor at Brandman University in Roseville, California for five years. In this position I taught a variety of classes and had the opportunity to act as a mentor for students on the path to becoming therapists.

I absolutely love being a therapist; I am passionate about meeting people who are in difficult circumstances and helping them identify internal resources as well as teaching new skills and strategies for navigating life.

When I am not engaged in being a therapist, supervisor or consultant, I enjoy being outdoors, amatuer photography, reading, and exploring the world with my dogs, Mimi and River.