About Me

Ultimately my path to becoming a Counselor and Trauma Specialist began with my own personal healing as a young adult. My life radically shifted when I began working with a trauma therapist during college. While I appeared to be a normal child, teenager and young adult I did not feel normal or okay on the inside. Throughout my life I felt like there was something wrong with me but I could never quite pinpoint what it was. Through trauma therapy I learned that I had this feeling because I had been living with traumatic stress my entire life.

The more I learned about traumatic stress the more I felt like I finally had a manual for my brain and body. Finally, I had someone who explained in a comprehensive way why I had struggled and who gave me the tools for change.  My goal is to create a similar experience for my clients. The psychoeducation about traumatic stress, understanding how your past experiences might be negatively impacting you today is profound. This understanding combined with concrete strategies and steps can create powerful shifts. 

I received my B.S. in Finance from the University of Illinois and I have worked in many facets of business. I have experience with both the corporate and non profit sectors and understand the challenges and benefits of both. Some of the skills I developed in those work experiences I still utilize today including personality assessments, SMART goals, effective communication strategies and more. 

I began my second career as a life coach because I wanted to help women experience breakthroughs in their lives. I enjoyed creating road maps that helped women achieve their personal goals and I delighted in watching them take step after step which grew their confidence, enthusiasm and joy. The change process is fascinating to me but through the years I learned it is much more complex than a simple roadmap. I discovered that there are stages to change, and resistance to change and deep subconscious patterns that make change unsafe. That began my focus on understanding how to identify and address what was blocking us from becoming the best version of ourselves. What was holding us back from the ideal person we wanted to be. What I kept finding was hardworking, determined and competent women who were still being negatively impacted by past events. Some of those events were clearly traumatic but sometimes women had no idea that something they brushed off was still affecting them today. At this point the next step in my career was obvious - I had to combine my two passions of helping women change and healing trauma. 

I received my Masters in Counseling from Ottawa University in Phoenix, Arizona. I chose Ottawa because they were one of the few programs that offered a concentration in Trauma Recovery at the Master’s level. I take a trauma informed approach to all aspects of psychotherapy which is a deep understanding of how our past experiences affect our beliefs, perspectives, choices and happiness. Furthermore, I am a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional, Licensed Independent Substance Abuse Counselor and Licensed Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor.  I have been working with women who have or are experiencing traumatic stress for fifteen years. 

My therapeutic approach is heavily influenced by

Pia Mellody, Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk. Peter Levine, Dr. Laura Parnell, Dr. Kevin McCauley and more. The models of therapy I utilize the most are the Tri-phasic model of trauma recovery, Post Induction Therapy, Attachment Theory, EMDR, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy.


I also have training in Motivational Interviewing, Mindfulness, Neurolinguistic Programming and more.

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