Welcome!
Get to know me to see if we might be a good fit for each other. I’d love to support you on your journey!
My expertise includes my own lived experience, which brings a unique understanding at a deeper level than solely education & training. I am a wife & mama first, & then a therapist.
I have two beautiful daughters, one of which was a 29+0 weeker, spending 61 days in the NICU at the height of the second wave of the pandemic. I know what it’s like to grieve the loss of your 3rd trimester. No baby shower. No maternity photos. For any crumb of a birth plan to be completely thrown out the window. To heal from an unexpected C-Section. To know a breast pump better than your own baby. To have your heart torn in two by wanting to be by your baby’s side in the hospital & wanting to be with your older child at home - & literally having to choose between the two. I also know what it’s like to suffer through a miscarriage. To go through the milestones of what could have been - what should have been.
And I’m sure you want to know about my official qualifications besides just my own personal experiences (that’s fair). I am a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist (LMFT) & have been in practice for nearly a decade. I hold a BA in Psychology from UCLA, & an MA in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Marriage & Family Therapy from Azusa Pacific University. I have specialized training in maternal mental health & am a certified perinatal mental health therapist (PMH-C). I am a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP) & trained in EMDR to help renegotiate & reprocess through experiences of birth trauma, perinatal mood & anxiety disorders, grief & loss, incomplete self-protective responses, early attachment issues, intergenerational trauma, etc.
My travels & international experiences including clinical work in East Africa have given me a passion for cross-cultural counseling. I have extensive experience (here in Orange County as well as cross-cultural counseling experience in Kenya) working with those who have walked through traumatic life experiences, those living with HIV/AIDS, those struggling with addiction/substance abuse, & college students struggling with identity issues & self-harm behaviors. In addition to being a LMFT, I am a former Certified Addiction Treatment Counselor (CATC).
My husband & I created the group Baby Bumps & Brushes during our own pregnancy, an expressive arts therapeutic group to help process through a variety of perinatal stages. We work together as Couple for Couples Counseling & see couples together as a couple offering weekly therapy & intensive therapy, retreats, groups & workshops. We are Level I & II trained in the Gottman Method for Couples Therapy, & are educators for the Gottman Institute’s programs: Bringing Baby Home & the 7 Principles for Making Marriage Work.
I emphasize a holistic approach focusing on mind, body, spirit, soul & community as interactive forces. If you know anything about psychological orientations, I fall under a humanistic/existential/experiential approach and implement a Christian faith based lens when invited. What this means is, as a therapist, I take on the role of a supportive consultant and learn from you, while also offering new perspectives and challenging maladaptive patterns and harmful behaviors when necessary. I am an open, genuine & real person, coming from the belief that humans are fundamentally good and created for a purpose. I believe trauma & past experiences discolor & taint our perceptions & ultimately our lives, & I work to dig deep into the root of the problems for long-term benefits rather than just addressing the symptoms for short-term relief. I walk alongside you on your journey towards healing as a fellow human being, & facilitate growth through removing barriers and overcoming challenges in order to fully walk into your purpose and achieve the abundant life you were meant for.
I know sometimes you desperately want to find healing, but just can’t seem to talk about it. I’ve been there too & I want to encourage you with this - YOU DON’T HAVE TO TALK ABOUT IT. Using Somatic Experiencing I gently guide you through a body led process to access body memory to find long-term healing, rather than just discussing the story behind it. I aim to keep therapy light & my goal is that you feel a little better after each meeting with me.
Other than that - I utilize a variety of expressive arts therapies including visual arts, music, journaling/writing, movement, etc.. I’m a dancer - currently hula - and I love bringing a creative approach to my therapy sessions. I look forward to connecting with you and walking with you on this path of healing.