Welcome

"The best gift you are ever going to give someone is the permission to feel safe in their own skin, to feel worthy, to feel like they are enough." - Hannah Brencher

It takes a great deal of courage to come to therapy; to make that first phone call and to know that this is the beginning of a journey in which you will find yourself, reveal yourself and heal yourself. I am here to provide a safe environment in order for your to reveal all that you are and help you to become all that you want to be. The biggest struggle in our lives is to accept and love ourselves. When we have that courage, it enables us to be more caring, compassionate beings and therefore enable us to connect to others.

Regardless of who we are or what we achieve, we can be affected by the turmoil that life presents and are struggling to find a way to a healthy and confident life. And all of us need connection to others. Everyone processes life’s traumas in different ways. There is no one answer for all.

As for me, I have always been interested in the human condition. It probably began as a little girl interested in the children who were bullied, children who did not come from functioning families, and adults who didn't know how to help their children. During my summers as a teenager I volunteered in organizations to help physically disabled children. This eventually led me to getting a master’s degree and credential in special education. It was there that my interest grew in families, family systems and child development. I began to mentor teachers and in time, taught a graduate course in family systems for USC at the John Tracy Clinic.

This experience ushered in a new challenge for me where I made a decision in 1983 to go to the University of Southern California and get a master’s degree in social work with an emphasis on clinical work. My experience with young children and their parents along with my education, taught me how important attachment to another and then separation and individuation form who we are.

Our lives include impermanence and shame and self-doubt and anger. We can call them big floods or little floods like a parking ticket, a brash comment, a hurtful glance. How do we deal with these issues? And most everything comes from need to connect with others. And here, attachment and separation are the core of life.

It takes a great deal of courage to be in therapy and desire to heal. A calm presence, patience, kindness and a desire to help you understand yourself and others may be a way to transition to a healthy, happy life. I am here to provide a safe and protective space for you and to facilitate whatever path you are on. To help you embark on your journey to self-discovery and healing.