Choosing to live authentically is an act of courage. Life offers many opportunities to hide our true selves, sometimes even from oneself, often resulting in living far below our capacity. Taking steps to heal, recover, survive, or take life to the next level can be challenging on our own. We’ll work together to understand what you want in your life, what’s getting in the way of having what you want, and how you can create opportunities that allow you to have more of what you want, empowering you to live courageously and authentically. I love working with clients who are navigating many different concerns including anxiety, depression, sexuality, gender, parenting, and more. I am an active, creative, and collaborative therapist. My practice starts from a place of seeing my clients as inherently valuable and worthy and trusting in our ability to create change together. I utilize strategies from several psychological theories and practices, and often bring in skills or practices for my clients to experiment with between sessions. I believe therapy often works best as a brief intervention. Our work together begins with the end in mind, how will you know you have done what you need to in therapy? We establish specific goals, once those are met therapy ends while you try out your new wisdom. If a few months or years later it seems there is more work to do, we jump back in. I am a licensed psychologist. I earned a M.Ed. in Rehabilitation Counseling (2000) and a Doctorate in Counseling Psychology (2005) from the University of Missouri. I have worked in community mental health, addiction treatment, dual diagnosis, university counseling, and private practice settings. I have also provided continuing education for licensed professionals, consulted with agencies, practices, and organizations. I am currently on faculty at MU, providing clinical training to graduate students in Counseling Psychology.