How I Approach Therapy
Understanding and aligning to your concerns
My primary goal is to connect and understand your concerns and struggles. How are you experiencing distress, worry, sadness, or hurt?
I deeply believe that good therapy comes from therapists who can hold people in their hurt while ensuring a safe place for them to explore the difficult issues and questions - All with the desire to reduce the pain and suffering they may be experiencing.
I want to collaboratively work in aligning myself to what you specifically need.
Promote compassion and self-compassion as agents of change
I believe that compassion is a secret agent of change. When we are faced with negativity, criticism, and failure - the thing we desire is kindness and empathy.
Do we get the experience of kindness or empathy from those around us - from the world, work, peers, or even our own families and partners? When negativity become the norm, we no longer need it said to us; it becomes us.
I want to encourage and help promote growth through helping each of us learn how to be more kind to ourselves as we look to better ourselves and our lives through managing difficulties and suffering. The world is difficult as it is, we don’t need it haunting us in our everyday moments.
Develop transformative insights that move us towards change
I don’t believe that therapy is for everyone, and that no one needs therapy for the rest of their lives.
However, I do believe that we all can benefit greatly from therapy, and my goal will always be to help my clients leave the therapy room with new understanding about themselves that clear a path forward.
I hope to join you in that process until you have either accomplished your goals, or have come to a place of peace where therapy becomes no longer relevant.
My Background
I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist based in San Diego, California. I primarily provide Couples Therapy within the Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) framework, as well as Individual Therapy with focus on helping individuals learn self-compassion, mindfulness, and healthy relationship with the self and others.
I received my Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from Bethel University of San Diego, and have been practicing since 2014, where I’ve worked within outpatient mental health clinics to non-profit organizations.
I primarily utilize Emotionally Focused Therapy (based on Sue Johnson’s work) as my framework when working with couples. Not only is EFT the most researched, efficacious - I find it to be the most intuitive and effective in my own professional work with couples.
I am also fully EMDR trained to help individuals in areas of single incident and/or complex trauma(s), and to help individuals that feel stuck based on their past experiences to move past said memories.
I know that finding the right therapist is important, and the process at times can be daunting. To make that journey a little bit easier, please feel free to reach out to me for a free 15 minute consult. I would love to get to know you, answer any questions you might have about therapy, and what it might look like for you.