About Me
About Me
I am a psychologist licensed in Washington state (License# PY61155333) and can also provide telehealth services to any PsyPact participating state (for a map of PsyPact participating states, click here). I currently provide in-person and virtual clinical services through Spectrum Psychological Associates of Washington.
I was born and raised in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area of Minnesota. I have received advanced training in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and I am a certified consultant for Anchored Relational Therapy, a dignity-based approach for working with individuals with histories of complex trauma and neuro-dissociative states. I am passionate about a number of social justice causes and believe that my role as a psychologist includes a responsibility of advocacy to curb the social barriers and ills that contribute to the distress of the people I serve. I approach my work with humility and humor, seeking to understand each person and their unique story.
Professional Experience
I obtained my Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Saint Thomas, obtained a Master of Arts in Counseling and Psychological Services, and earned my Doctor of Psychology degree from the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota's APA-accredited PsyD in Counseling Psychology program. I completed my APA-accredited pre-doctoral internship with Behavioral Health Network in western Massachusetts where I provided individual, couples, and group therapy in a community mental health setting and provided behavioral health consultation in a primary care setting. I completed my postdoctoral fellowship at the Trauma Disorders Program of Sheppard Pratt Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland where I provided inpatient and outpatient treatment to individuals with DID, Complex Posttraumatic Stress, and various other trauma- and dissociation-related disorders. I also provided hospital-wide, trauma-specific consultation. I hold an affiliate faculty appointment in the PsyD in Clinical Psychology program at Antioch University, Seattle, and an adjunct faculty appointment at the Seattle Institute of East Asian Medicine. I serve as an associate editor for the APA-published Journal of Threat Assessment and Management and serve on the editorial board for the journal Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, & Policy published by division 56 (Trauma Psychology) of the American Psychological Association and Psychological Injury and Law published by Springer. I am a member of the American Psychological Association, most active in Division 56 (Trauma Psychology) as well as the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD).
Who I serve
I offer therapy and asessment to adolescents and adults 14 or older. Although I routinely work with individuals describing various different clinical concerns, I specialize in working with individuals who have experienced abuse or neglect in childhood and may carry diagnoses such as Dissociative Identity Disorder and Complex Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. I adopt a stance of personal and cultural humility with each individual that I work with. I have experience working with people from all walks of life and am particularly passionate about working with LGBTQ+ individuals; Black, Indigenous, and other Persons of the Global Majority; individuals with disabilities; and other individuals who have experienced systemic oppression. Successful trauma resolution can not just involve the individual - it must also value the communities we belong to. My approach is both culturally sensitive and culturally specific, deconstructing the role of dominant culture in the marginalization of targeted communities.