Journaling became an important tool in my self-discovery journey, and is something I highly encourage for those doing insight work. Journaling helped me put thoughts into words, and forced me to clarify ideas.

I would also give a major shout out to family, friends, mentors, and therapists along the way. Without outside perspective, we become susceptible to blind spots within the echo chamber of our own thoughts and opinions.

I was able to boil down some of my occupational aspirations: Critical Thinking, Independence, and Altruism. This would eventually lead me towards pursuing a career as a Therapist.

In 2015, I began working on my Master’s of Arts in Psychology from Antioch University Los Angeles. At this time, I also began working with clients in a clinical setting. Initially, I worked in a community health setting with low income clients, on a “sliding scale,” to ensure affordability and accessibility. My clients then included individuals, couples and families from the greater Los Angeles area.

Eventually, I sought new types of work, and transitioned into Dual Diagnosis; the intersection of mental disorder and substance abuse. Clients here came from nationwide, and were notoriously “high risk.” I worked in halfway homes, detoxes, PHP, and IOP programs over the course of the growing opioid epidemic. I’ve worked with clients affected by homelessness, psychosis, legal issues, domestic violence, eating disorders, and a wide variety of traumas. While absolutely challenging, I found myself willing and driven to help people get their lives back on track. I worked with individuals, couples, involved families, and ran treatment groups routinely. I gained a lot of dynamic wisdom, met incredible people, and sharpened my craft during my 5+ years in this part of the field.

After many hoops to jump through, I became fully licensed in June of 2020, where I adapted to the Covid-19 climate by switching to the work-from-home format of telehealth. Today, I reside in San Diego, and work with clients California-wide.

The challenges that people bring into session are quite diverse; Depression, Anxiety, Grief, Anger, Apathy, Loneliness, Shame, Fear, Relational Issues, Career Issues.

While there is a lot of subjectivity in what people need from therapy, I believe we all have fundamental baseline needs for good/better mental and emotional wellness:

•to feel strong and confident in our bodies. 

•to find activities and purpose that is sufficiently challenging, interesting, and meaningful.

•to feel loved by and connected with the people and world around us.

•to be at peace and find joy.

I consider myself to be philosophical, non-traditional and humorous by nature, but look to boil things down into simplified, pragmatic, and actionable wisdoms.

Ultimately, I want to see people succeed in their ventures, and I see my therapist role as a sort of guide, cheerleader, ally, or sometimes, just a witness.

Thanks for reading.