This is the page that I tell you about the 25 years of experience I have in the healing arts and I list my credentials and training.

Know however, that training in itself does not tell you about the heart and mind of the clinician. Nor does training tell you if YOU and the clinician are a “match”.

All studies consistently show that the RELATIONSHIP you have with your healing professionals is a crucial element to your healing!  You are looking for partnership.

Interview. Trust your gut. Mindfully discern who is best for you.

The most important determinant to a happy life is Your Health.

You are investing time and money.

Choose with care.

My training, has spanned the Mind, Body, Spirit continuum.

Like many people, I was looking for the secret that would end my confusion around food and “correct” body weight . I was searching for the perfect diet. In those early years, I thought that “diet” was just about food. A weekend workshop called, Lighten-Up,  created by Dr. Steve Strauss, taught that the mind and spirit profoundly impact the body. I was exposed to the idea that food, like everything else, is a product – packaged and sold  for profit – not always with health in mind.  I learned that for some, sugar can be an addictive substance. I learned that the relationship we have with our bodies and food  mirrors our relationships. These ideas changed my life trajectory.

A fire was ignited which has not dwindled. 

The desire to help others heal was born.

The herbs followed the food. In my first visit to an herbalist, she suggested Valerian officinalis. When that herb kicked in, I felt a calm I had never experienced in my entire life! I wondered, “Is this how other people are walking through the world?” Before Valerian, I had no awareness that I was anxious. I needed to study these wonderful, healing plants. This was at the beginning of the shift toward integrated medicine and I was in the right place at the right time.  Traveling the country teaching,  and in private sessions, people were bringing mental health issues and questions about spirituality/religion. I wondered why this was happening….

Clearly, I needed more education. However, the trauma of my childhood had resulted in fear about religion.  The teachings of Faith were linked with confusion. The healing mysteries of the plants and the birth of my son had broken my heart wide open.  A deep desire to understand this Mystery of Life – to know God – was born. And then, Jesus visited me in a dream:

I was at a party, attended by people from all over the world in their native dress. I heard a  knock at the door. When I opened it there was a man and a woman from India telling me that there was someone they wanted me to meet. I followed them outside. Sitting in the drivers seat of an old, beat-up, avocado green car, one hand on the wheel, and the other casually resting on the window frame, was a smiling Jesus. Even in dream state I was surprised. Jesus, in a very matter-of-fact tone, spoke to me,”You know you do not have to be so afraid of me. I was one of the first great motivational speakers.” I, who attended any motivational talk I could responded, “Oh, I never thought of it that way.” 

(years later in yoga teacher training, this dream took on additional meaning…)

From that moment on, I began to explore.  Slowly I began to separate the childhood interpretations  growing into an adult understanding.

It was from this foundation I ended up at Loyola University, a graduate student in Pastoral Counseling. I did not know it then, but Pastoral Counseling was the first Positive Psychology, a truly integrative program that encouraged me to discover what I was called to give back to help others.  Learning the most profound lesson which is that in healing our own wounds, we can then harness that healing to comfort those who mourn and feel enslaved by pain and trauma.

But talk is NOT enough.  Telling your story is important, but 100 years of talk therapy have taught us that in order to truly heal we must work with the Felt Sense of Fear and Love in the Body.  Otherwise, we keep circling the drain wondering why we still suffer…

And here you are – discerning if I can help you?

The Hebrew scriptures tell us we must choose Life or Death. But my life and training have taught me that the pain of betrayal and harshness of life can block our freedom to choose. We are trapped surviving, but we are meant to Thrive.

If you desire healing, it is possible!  

We will explore together what is showing up in your real, lived life, and how are you called to respond?  The ways that trauma may be impacting your life, and the gifts that you bring to the task of healing.

Daily, I see lives transformed.

All of the education and experience I have help me to discern what is possibly GETTING IN YOUR WAY on a variety of levels.  I bring many tools to help you GET OUT OF YOUR OWN WAY and let healing grow.

However, the most important “training” has been healing from “trauma survivor” with a life of suffering – to one of contentment and greater ease. I have been where you are and I KNOW healing is possible. I have lived and practiced every intervention we will explore.

We  are a team. We do this together.

I am interested in learning what is right with you and what you desire to change. Healing is a process of accepting current reality and transforming your future. With the help of the right person you can find the Life YOU are Called to Live.

The Highest Version of Yourself and the joy and peace spoken of in all the sacred scriptures and poetry throughout time.

Board Certified in Tele-Mental Health (BC-TMH) through the National Board of Certified Counselors – Distance in not an issue.

We can work virtually, by phone, or in-person (or a combination). 

I serve clients all over the world.

Accreditation

Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC)

Certified

Education