Education

Knox College (Galesburg, IL)

Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Theatre

Sam Houston State University (Huntsville, TX)

Master of Arts in Counseling

 

​

Professional License

Licensed Professional Counselor (Texas, #62067)

Licensed Professional Counselor (Pennsylvania, PC013584)

​

​

Work Related Experience

I have worked in various mental health setting, including but not limited to:

​

Residential Treatment - Conducted assessments and facilitated individual, group, family and couple therapy for patients with eating disorders and addictions

​

County Affiliated - Redesigned and managed the family services sector for eight Head Start centers

​

MHMRA of Harris County - Developed and managed a 24-hour crisis program and housing for chronically mentally ill individuals

​

Private Practice - Individual, Couples/Marital and Family Therapy

​

Vocational - Assessed, mentored, obtained employment, trained, monitored and liaison between employer and employee for developmentally disabled adults. 

​

​

My Approach

I believe clients have the capacity to resolve their own barriers and are capable of making their own decisions via utilizing identified resources and my assistance as a Licensed Professional Counselor.  Clients include persons who experience difficulty resolving interpersonal and personal issues, making decisions when conflicting objectives or benefits are issues, reducing stress and anxiety, addictions, eating disorders and many more. 

 

Your self-awareness, self-esteem, overall well being, ability to find solutions to issues, coping mechanisms and independence are overall counseling goals.  Some clients need only a few sessions to achieve these goals, while others require months or even years of counseling. 

​

My counseling approach is eclectic and includes a person-centered base with Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Solution-Focused techniques.  In other words, I work with clients to become aware of their thoughts, the ramifications of those thoughts, accept responsibility and gain empowerment via taking control of their thoughts, feelings and actions.  I also utilize the client’s strengths to solve their problems and meet their needs.  Occasionally, other approaches may be utilized that fit with the client’s needs and is deemed appropriate.

 

In addition to the theoretical orientations stated above, I may incorporate Animal Assisted Therapy utilizing canines.  Animal Assisted Therapy can be very useful in reducing stress when discussing anxious experiences, supporting a safe and comfortable environment, learning new behaviors, creating awareness and modeling unconditional acceptance.

 

 

Animals Utilized in Animal Assisted Therapy

Parker is a Great Pyrenees that we adopted in 2019.  He was found roaming the streets near San Leon, TX and heartworm positive.  He is a gentle giant.  Parker hasn't met a stranger yet and loves all animals and people.  He is intuitive, playful and reads dogs and people.  He has a special infinity for adolescent/young men.  If you're not interested in playing/petting Parker, he will simply greet you and lay down; however, if you become upset, he will get up and check on you.  If you are interested in him, Parker will crawl up on the couch with you.  Parker is thankful for being rescued on a daily basis via living life fully. He hopes that more dogs have a second chance on life that he has.  If you are interested in adopting (specialty breeds or mixed), please visit your local shelter, breed specific rescues or www.bayareapetadoptions.org.