ABOUT ME
I’m a California licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #50448) with sixteen years experience working with adults, teens, couples, and families on issues including anxiety and depression, chronic pain and illness, cultural integration for children of immigrants, avoiding burnout, teenagers transitioning to adulthood, codependency, co-parenting for multiracial and blended families, parent-child relationship issues, blended family issues, and personal development.
I welcome those navigating identity exploration and have many years of experience helping clients with issues around racial, cultural, and gender identity.
I received my M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University, Los Angeles.
My Background
In the course of my life I have held many identities.
Since 2009 I have lived in the San Francisco Bay Area with my husband and my seventeen year old Australian Shepherd, Pixie, who’s named after the 1980s punk band.
I’ve spent much of my life on the fringes of mainstream society and, in my heart, this is where I am most comfortable.
I grew up on the Pacific Coast outside Los Angeles in an artists’ colony, amongst writers, musicians, visual artists, and other bohemians. These early experiences, along with my relationship with the land I grew up on, shaped how I understand the world.
In 1996 I moved to New York City, where I worked as a performance artist and bartender.
In 2002 I returned to California. In 2007 I completed my Masters in Clinical Psychology at Antioch University, Los Angeles, with a specialization in Applied Community Psychology.
From 2007 to 2014 I worked in community mental health agencies in Los Angeles and the East Bay. Much of this time was spent working with children and families whose mental health was directly impacted by racism and poverty. I worked as both therapist and advocate for my clients and encountered directly how our social systems can do as much harm as good.
I have been working in private practice in the East Bay since 2012.