Therapy & Clinical Services
My work as a therapist is guided by this mission:
to see people as they actually are,
to help them sort through the competing demands and opportunities of who they feel they should be and who they want to be, and
to help them create environments in which they can recognize and lean into their own authenticity.
mood disorders & trauma
My clinical education at Duke University and at the Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) afforded me training in several empirically-supported treatments and approaches. My clinical approach is informed by Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) techniques, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and its emphases on mindfulness, interpersonal effectiveness, distress tolerance, and emotion regulation, and continuing study of therapy modalities and techniques. I individualize my approach for each client and use my broad training to identify a customized treatment plan.
life transitions
Transitions can be hard- whether we want what is on the other side of the bridge or not, navigating the space between can be demanding and require the development or reinvigoration of coping skills. I enjoy working with people as they journey through the chapters of their lives and negotiate life transitions.
Academia
The demands of life in academia are unknown to many who have not navigated that world. Over the years, I have worked with many individuals in academia who are seeking care for their mental health and wellness. Topics like faculty meetings, grant proposals, the sense of never really being ‘off’, imposter phenomenon, and the juggling act of work/life balance are topics we can address in your care.
For over a decade, I have worked as a licensed psychologist in North Carolina and have maintained a small private therapy practice in addition to my full-time work in academia at Elon University as a teacher, scholar, and researcher. I have the deepest respect for the people I have worked with who have trusted me with their stories and experiences and allowed me to be part of their journeys in wellness. Through weekly therapy (50 minutes per session), which ranges from brief therapy for specific issues or concerns to longer-term psychotherapy, I rely on empirically-supported treatments and my knowledge of the interdisciplinary research literatures on wellness and happiness to support my clients. I have been offering my services via telehealth since the onset of the pandemic and have found it productive. I use a secure video platform to offer my services via telemental health. I am an Out of Network (OON) provider for all health insurance which means that you will pay me for sessions at the time of service and I will provide you with a receipt that assists you in getting reimbursement from your insurance company at the out-of-network rate). Prospective patients are invited to call me at the number above (rather than contact me through this site which does not encrypt or otherwise ensure the security and confidentiality of communications). Within my practice, I strive to provide care that is LGBT-affirming and informed by the role of privilege in relation to racial and ethnic, gender, sexual, socioeconomic, age, and ability-related identities.
“We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It’s just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen: room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy.”
- Pema Chödrön