If you are feeling unhappy, stressed, overwhelmed and struggling to be present in your life
If deep down inside, you feel alone, disconnected, not being understood and often feel like you don’t belong
If you are willing to talk about “it” but don’t know how or where to start
Or you feel ashamed for even having the thought of wanting to talk about it?
You put on a smiling face
… because it’s easier to cover your scars and hide your pain
MY APPROACH
You Are Not Broken — It’s an Opportunity for True Change
Clients often come to me with desire to change but don’t know how and where to start. I approach clients’ struggle and human suffering through a resilience lens. I view the opportunity to guide my clients to evolve through life adversity a privilege of mine. My roots in Developmental and Educational Psychology coupled with the scientist-practitioner training in Counseling Psychology have cultivated my integrative perspective on mental “illness,” mental “health” and human “being” within a holistic framework across the lifespan in support of promoting optimal development and psychological resilience.
I genuinely feel honored to be invited to join clients’ journey of healing and posttraumatic growth. When working with clients, I primarily utilize the Psychodynamic/Interpersonal approach and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). I also integrate culturally affirming interventions from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Narrative Therapy, Solution Focused Brief (SFBT), Dialectical Behavior (DBT), and Structural Family Therapy when appropriate. As an experienced practitioner committed to ongoing professional growth, I actively look to integrate contemporary research, theories and techniques into my practice. While therapy approaches and theories have provided me with the roadmap that guides my work with clients, my personal and professional experiences across borders, time zones and cultures have enabled me to dive alongside clients into the deep ocean of darkness and guide them toward a greater sense of clarity.
My goal as a psychologist is to provide quality, effective, and individualized treatment that help clients reconnect to hope and joy in their relationships, work and daily lives. As an empathetic, active listener, I ask tactful yet probing questions peppered with a gentle sense of humor, warming the heart and soul. Offering passive listening or conventional empathy is not my style. With clients' therapy goals in mind, I could be direct and gently confrontational when appropriate. Clients, colleagues and doctoral trainees have characterized my style as insightful, warm, non-judgmental, caring yet genuinely forthright … and creative.
My clients with previous therapy experiences often report having made progress and moving toward intended results since the initial stage of our work together. For those who are seeking therapy only to vent and have no desire to grow insight into the root cause of problems, nor do they wish to master new tools for fundamental change, we might not be a good fit. If you are eager to achieve therapy goals and committed to investing your time in consistent therapy sessions, I look forward to hearing from you! I offer a free 15-minute introductory phone consultation.