If you have reached this page, you are probably wondering more about me and if I am the person to work with you. Choosing a therapist is like window shopping: you don’t really know what that amazing coat feels like until you wear it, move around in it and know what it feels like on your body. By the same token, you won’t really know if your therapist, including me, is the right person with whom to take a very personal journey, until you sit across from him/her and experience a session.
I feel honored to do the work I do with clients. I consider it sacred work, which begins with where a client wants to start, how fast or how slowly the client wants to go, what issues the client wishes to address or not address and setting reasonable expectations about therapy and its goals. The clients I work best with are here because they recognize something is not working well for them–they have developed anxiety and/or depression and may be struggling with changes in life, stress or relationship issues. I enjoy deeper work that may raise questions such as: Who am I? How do I define myself in my environment? Why do I feel lost? What is my greatest desire? How do I find joy in my life? I also like to work with clients to tame their anxiety and reduce their depression. While I have experience with children, I prefer to work with those 18 and older.
In session, you can expect me to listen, but not to be a blank slate. I have a conversational style and like to learn about my clients and help them to see their strengths. While you can expect to talk in session, you may also find that creativity and play are encouraged. Everything from coloring, collage and narrative stories, to sand tray therapy, blowing bubbles, and journaling may appear as ways to express and explore feelings and your own story. Therapy can be both intense and fun.
As for me? I am a transplant for Western New York, who attended the University of Maryland, Baltimore School of Social Work, where I earned my MSW in 1999. I have worked in community mental health, with children and adolescents, on an adult inpatient general psychiatric unit, and, for the last five years, as a therapist at The Counseling Center in Towson, MD. When I am not in the office, I spend time with my family, read fiction, bake, walk, garden, and write. I also enjoy a good movie or lots of British shows, all while eating chocolate or popcorn, and trying to calm three neurotic cats, as an observant rescue dog watches.
I tell clients when they first call that therapy is about fit–like that coat in the window. Our first session together will be a time for you and me to see if we can work together. If it does not feel right, that’s okay. We can work together to find someone who may be a better fit. After all, therapy is about YOU!
If you would like to set up a time to meet, please call me at:
Outside the Lines Counseling
410-245-9722