I found my way to this career path after recovering from an unexpected musculoskeletal trauma in my early twenties. During this chapter, I spent three years on bed rest and frequently consumed content about contemplative wisdom, psychology, integrative medicine, and sociopolitical issues. Out of necessity, I learned how to sit with my pain. I also learned that my suffering and joy needed to coexist. Once on the other side of significant healing, I pursued a degree in clinical social work because it felt in alignment with my values and interests. While I’m appreciative for some of my formal training, I believe that my relevant lived experiences have more profoundly shaped my ability to be present and hold space for others. They have also helped me to embrace disability pride, queer joy, and self-compassion. Now I am here to support clients in finding whatever “well-being” means for them.
Social Locations
In pursuit of authentic connection and the decolonization of psychotherapy, I believe in sharing my intersectional locations of privilege and marginalization. I identify as white, cisgender, queer, millennial-aged, and disabled. I’m hypermobile (EDS, POTS, MCAS) with chronic pain and some neurodivergent traits. I’ve experienced my disability in ways that are dynamic, visible, and invisible. I’ve had access to education and have experienced both class privilege and financial hardship. I’m someone who has had to heal from religious/coming out trauma. I would currently describe myself as spiritual. My personal interests include contemplative practices, gardening, snowshoeing, and astrology.
Education
Middlebury College in Vermont: BA with a major in English Literature and a minor in Environmental Studies.
Columbia University in New York: MSW with a specialization in Advance Clinical Practice and a focus in Health, Mental Health, and Disabilities.
Clinical Training
Liberation Institute in San Francisco, CA: Grassroots organization prioritizing access to care and centering liberation psychology.
Pacific Center in Berkeley, CA: LGBTQIA+ center (oldest in the Bay Area!) providing sliding-scale psychodynamic therapy services.
Center for Mindful Psychotherapy in San Francisco, CA: Nonprofit organization focusing on holistic and mindful approaches to therapy.
UCSF Children’s Hospital in Oakland, CA: Pediatric hospital providing inpatient and outpatient care. I contributed as a medical social worker at the endocrinology clinic.