It’s time to prioritize your healing.
So many things end up coming first - balancing caring for children or loved ones, the demands of your work, struggling to keep the household running with some semblance of sanity…and in the end, it often feels like there isn’t enough time, energy, or money left to attend to your own needs and wounded parts. Maybe you’ve been thinking about starting therapy for a long time. What would it be like to finally allocate space in your heart/schedule/budget to be heard and supported, and to reflect, grow, and heal?
I love supporting helpers. Many of my clients are in the helping professions: healthcare professionals, teachers, counselors, folks in vocational ministry or nonprofit work, stay at home parents, working parents, caregivers. I work with people who spend their lives tuning in to the needs of others and might often feel worn down, burned out, numb, or invisible.
I also work with grieving people as they navigate the devastating and disorienting journey of grief, and with folks struggling with faith, doubt, disillusionment, and the impact of harm experienced inside toxic faith systems.
I can provide support and resources toward:
Building intimacy and connection in your significant relationships
Learning to create and maintain boundaries that protect your serenity and promote healthy relationships
Increasing resilience in the face of adversity
Making space to grieve losses
Finding new reserves of hope when you feel stuck or hopeless
Summoning courage to take risks and move toward your hopes and dreams.
I will approach our work together with genuine curiosity about your story, respect for what you believe, and tools to help you move toward the life you want.
More about my approach to counseling…
My integrative approach allows me to bring a wide variety of counseling methods and techniques to our work together. Specifically, I often draw upon techniques found in Narrative Therapy, which helps us explore the stories that shape our identities, and focuses on connecting with our personal values and hopes to imagine the possibilities for creating a new story for the future.
As we work together, I will tailor my approach to your unique personality, needs and preferences. I may also draw from Solution-Focused Therapy in which we look at what is working well in your life (or what has worked for you in the past) in order to help you envision and move toward a more fulfilling future.
My work with couples is also influenced by the work of Dr. Sue Johnson (Emotion Focused Couple Therapy) and Drs. John and Julie Gottman (The Gottman Institute).
My background
I hold a Masters degree in Marriage, Couple and Family Counseling from George Fox University. My coursework included studies in family systems, couple therapy, advanced family therapy, traumatology, interpersonal neurobiology, emotion focused therapy, play therapy, addictions, and group therapy.
In addition, I have a B.A. in Sociology from Willamette University and professional experience working with survivors of domestic and sexual violence in a shelter setting, with homeless and at-risk youth in a job training program, and as a counselor to individuals, couples and families in a family homeless shelter.
My community involvement includes having served as a volunteer community mediator of neighborhood disputes, and as a leader in my faith community. I live in Silverton, OR with my husband and children, and enjoy spending my free time exploring all that our gorgeous area has to offer.