Therapeutic Approach
Clients have described me as collaborative and compassionate within my strength-based multicultural approach to therapy. Difficult life circumstances, including grief, depression and harsh self-criticism can lead to rejecting parts of yourself and we can work on understanding and reclaiming your identity. I’d be honored to accompany you on your journey to healing from various obstacles in life.
I strive to create a sense of “we-ness” to make you feel “heard and seen” for who you are. I use humanistic principles and a wide range of evidenced-based practices. My goals are to tailor treatment to your specific needs, hold equitable space for you, step into difficult paths with you, and emerge stronger and more empowered.
In addition to my clinical work, I greatly enjoy my role as a clinical adjunct professor at Pepperdine University where I provide supervision for doctoral students. Supervising others provides me with the opportunity to conceptualize a broad range of mental health challenges that include cultural considerations such as social economic status, race, religion, and sexual identity.
I also work as a Staff Psychologist at the Veterans Affairs and specialize in trauma (i.e., combat, childhood, race-based, sexual, and military sexual), depression, anxiety, grief/loss, substance abuse and severe mental illness. I have over 10 years of experience within mental Health. I am looking forward to working with you.
Depression | Anxiety | Relational Issues
You may feel that emotions are running your life rather than you being the executor of them. Perhaps you lack the motivation to engage in things you used to enjoy and just don’t know how to get out of this cycle. Together we will gradually work on reclaiming those lost parts of yourself. I will help you face emotions that seem too difficult to experience with the goal of processing them and arriving at a place that feels like yourself again. You may worry a lot about a number of things or feel that you are defective in some way. Maybe you have the tendency to be harsh on yourself which may feed in on feelings of shame. Together we can decrease self-judgment and reestablish relationships and fulfill authentic life goals and values.
Mindfulness
Life can get overwhelming at times. I have extensive experience in leading mindfulness interventions for groups and individuals with various issues including anxiety, depression, racial traumatization, chronic pain, psychotic disorders and issues related to aging. We will engage in culturally informed mindfulness practice to enhance your attention, bring awareness to yourself and others, regulate mind, body and emotion. We can also reflect and identify how mindfulness can enhance awareness to the many masks worn to survive in this world. My aim is to provide a space that is conducive to healing for individuals of all backgrounds.
Trauma
Maybe it feels as if challenges of the past are interfering with your everyday life. Perhaps you started avoiding things or people that remind you of the trauma and you find it hard to remain present with others and feel safest when shutting the world out. I have years of clinical experience in addressing several forms of trauma, including childhood, combat, military sexual, and race-based trauma. I utilize evidenced-based practices (e.g., Prolonged Exposure and Cognitive Processing Therapy as well as Humanistic Theories) to address symptoms related to trauma. You might feel that your traumatic experience places great limitations on your freedom. Together we will build resilience, face your fears in a manageable step-by-step way with the ultimate goal of gaining back your freedom, leading a meaningful life, and significant anxiety reduction.
Older Adults | Grief & Loss
I greatly enjoy working with older adults and have extensive experience within my private practice as well as at the Veterans Affairs (e.g., palliative care clinics, inpatient nursing homes). I offer a space in which stories can be shared. Themes that emerge include a lack of purpose, grief, isolation, chronic pain, death anxiety, spirituality, depression, anxiety, and cultural identity. Together we can instill new meaning into your day-to-day experiences and instill a sense of hope and dignity.
Liberation & Multiculturalism
I offer a space where you can reclaim your identity, gain awareness and explore inequities encountered in your life. You may have rejected parts of yourself and together we will work on understanding and reclaiming that identity. I use an empowering approach for those who have been othered or dehumanized and aim towards self-growth and healing. One of our goals can be to help you become an active agent in the journey toward liberation.
Art & Expression
Not everything can be expressed through talking and thinking. Art offers a unique way of exploring one self and how we relate to the world around us. Viewing art and making art can elicit strong emotions and bring awareness to an individual’s social, historical and political context. Visuals came before language and cognition and traumatic memories are often stored in images rather than words. At times I incorporate images of visual art as a way of more directly accessing and understanding your inner world to support healing.
* Within the first few sessions we will collaboratively determine which theoretical approach best fits your needs and if we are a good fit.