I am a specialist in treating post traumatic stress disorder - PTSD - and complex c-PTSD, including physical abuse, bullying, sexual abuse, rape, emotional abuse, verbal abuse, domestic violence, infidelity, murder and suicide in family members, cult and spiritual abuse. I also work with trauma from poverty, immigration, accidents, chronic illness, and dysfunctional family and marital relationships.

I use EMDR as the primary method to treat trauma, integrated with Polyvagal theory, internal family systems and parts work, attachment theory, relationship skills, and methods to down regulate arousal and reduce reactivity to trauma triggers - within a caring, supportive, nurturing, and affectionate therapeutic relationship. EMDR can also effective for treating phobias and anxiety. 

My counseling clients are intellectually gifted, creative, artistically talented, high achieving, teens and adults. My clients are executives such as CEO, VP, executive directors, engineers, medical doctors, artists, writers, musicians, dancers, politicians, social change makers, healers, and performers. 

As a mental health counselor for adults and teens, I provide nonjudgmental caring and  passionate support as you learn skills and become whole from past wounds. Issues addressed include:

• Shifting relationship dynamics with sociopaths and narcissists.
• Healing from traumatic past experiences, PTSD and complex PTSD.
• Wounding family patterns.
• Grief, and loss that contaminate the present;
• Challenges of being intellectually gifted, creative, high achieving, or artistically talented.

• Optimal marriage and divorce adjustment;
• Anxiety, phobias, and fear.
• Chronic pain management and adapting to chronic illness, processing the grief and loss that accompanies chronic illness. I am especially knowledgeable about Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS).
• Improving relationships at work, at home, at school, with friends and family  (communication skills, intimacy, trust, partnership problem solving).
• Return to career after extended absence.
• ​Making career changes as part of the growth and healing process.
• Alleviating depression;.
• Poor self-esteem, social isolation.
• How to experience feeling content, fulfilled, creative, appreciative, and joyful..

I am passionately committed to helping you:

• Reduce stress and worry,
• Improve concentration and productivity,
• Cope effectively with life challenges,
• Discover happiness,
• Enjoy fulfilling relationships,
• Understand and transform creative block,
• Achieve goals, 
• Establish healthy boundaries,
• Learn relationship and communication skills,
• Lessen chronic pain,
• ​Resolve trauma and heal old wounds so that you are less burdened by the past,​
• Change self-defeating and self-harming patterns,
• Practice good self-care,  
• Find that ever moving point of balance, and 
• Share a good laugh together, now and then.

The demographics of my clients are:

• Almost 1/4 identify as women, almost 3/4 identify as men, several are nonbinary, several identify as  LGBTQ.
• One half are immigrants or children of immigrants.
• One half were impoverished or low income as children.

TELEHEALTH MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELING
USING A FREE SMARTPHONE APP OR INTERNET VIDEO CONNECTION.

All sessions are held via secure, confidential, HIPAA compliant video sessions to residents of Washington State..

I started using video counseling a few years ago - after a storm dumped hip deep snow around my mountain home. Clients responded positively, finding telemental health services could be accessed if they were traveling for work or pleasure, if they were home caring for sick children, if chronic illness or disability made it difficult to commute to an office appointment, if they wanted to protect confidentiality and not be seen in a clinic waiting room, if they wanted to access a psychotherapist with my training and specialties but lived too far away, etc. So, when the pandemic started, the telehealth tech was already familiar and ready to go.

Telehealth allows high profile individuals to attend with greater privacy because they are not in a clinic waiting room.  And there are no traffic jams or long commutes to appointments. Treatment is confidential, easily accessible, and very effective.

FORMAL EDUCATION

PhD - Transpersonal and Humanistic Psychology
MA  - Psychology, Marriage and Family Therapy
Graduate Certificate - Psychology of Creativity
Masters of Fine Art
Bachelors of Fine Art, Magna cum Laude

Additional Training

Chronic illness, chronic pain, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN
EMDR I and II (trauma treatment)
Polyvagal Theory
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Please see my Bio for additional education and training information.
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SPECIALTIES 

Gifted and Talented

​I work with intellectually gifted, high achieving, creative, and artistically talented adults (and a few teens). My adult clients are entrepreneurs creating new businesses, visionary CEOs and senior VPs, executives, artists (writers, journalists, film makers, ballet and modern dancers, circus artists and aerialists, visual artists, designers, musicians, animators, game designers, etc.), healers (doctors, counselors, politicians, and social change makers), attorneys, architects, high school students, graduate students, and engineers.
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I am open minded and accepting, I've worked with LGBTQ teens who are "coming out", poly families, and members of many different religions and ethnic groups.

INSURANCE

​Please note, I am an out of network provider only. I provide a monthly superbill statement that has all information needed for you to submit a claim directly to your health insurance company.  Some companies do not cover out of network providers. 

FEES

Counseling 50 minutes: $300
Counseling 80 minutes: $450

Initially, I meet with most clients for 80 minutes on a weekly basis.  A longer session allows deeper work, supports faster progress, and is required for trauma treatment. 

After we complete trauma work, develop skills, and achieve change, maintenance and growth phase counseling is often 50 minutes biweekly.
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