About
My approach to therapy comes from the belief that God placed within each of us is an inner wisdom, that when accessed will lead us to new insights, answers, relief and even healing from our burdens and struggles. I believe each of us was designed to find healing, when we do our own, honest “soul searching” or inner exploration. Richard Schwartz, developer of the Internal Family Systems model, stumbled upon an approach to navigating our internal systems through work with his clients. He discovered that we all possess qualities of calm, clarity, confidence, courage, competence, connectedness and curiosity when connected to this source of inner wisdom. My job as a therapist is to help people access the wisdom placed within them and that will bring about relief and healing. If you are a Christian, you also have the Holy Spirit inside you to guide this process exponentially.
My therapeutic approaches predominantly include Internal Family Systems Therapy, EMDR, Client Centered Therapy and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. With adolescents, I also employ the modalities of art and directive play.
The services I provide include individual psychotherapy with adults and adolescents, both male and female. I predominantly work with individuals who have gone through some sort of trauma and are in need of additional assistance with coping and healing from the trauma. However, I also have expertise in the areas of parent-child conflict, relationship issues, families impacted by substance abuse, as well as, individuals experiencing depression, anxiety, mood swings, eating disorders, codependency issues, narcissistic abuse and other psychological difficulties. With adolescents, I am experienced in working with multiple behavioral issues, including oppositional behaviors, anger and aggression, attachment issues, low self-esteem, etc.
I graduated with a Masters degree in Social Work in 1999 and a Baccalaureate of Arts degree in Psychology in 1994. I have been licensed by the State of Alaska as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker since 2006. Additionally, I am a member of the National Association of Social Workers, who’s Code of Ethics I subscribe. My professional background includes experience working with adults, adolescents and children who've had various psychological, emotional and behavioral symptoms resulting from traumatic experiences and/or biological factors. I worked for ten years in the area of Intensive Family Preservation, assisting families with parenting, discipline, parent/child relationship issues and their children’s behavioral and emotional difficulties. Prior to this, I worked primarily with Severely Emotionally Disturbed children and adolescents in both residential and community based treatment programs. In 2007, I began Inner Wisdom Counseling, my private practice, where I continue to enjoy helping clients on their healing journeys to this day.
