Warm, practical, evidence-based therapy that helps you understand the patterns keeping you stuck and respond to them differently.
You might be wondering: Will therapy actually help me change, or will I just talk about my problems?
That’s a fair question. And the answer is: real change happens when insight is paired with practical change.
The approaches I use–primarily CBT and DBT–aren’t about endlessly analyzing your problems without meaningful change. They’re about identifying patterns that keep you trapped, understanding what’s underneath them, and building sustainable ways to move through life differently.
Meaningful change often involves practicing new ways of responding–even when it feels uncomfortable at first.
What You’ll Experience In Sessions
Therapy with me is active, collaborative, and grounded in real life–not just insight for insight’s sake.
First, you’ll have space to stop performing. You don’t have to justify your stress, minimize your struggles, or pretend things feel more manageable than they actually are. Therapy should feel like a place where you can show up honestly.
Then, you’ll be heard and understood. I don’t just listen passively. Together, we’ll begin making sense of the patterns underneath your anxiety, burnout, people-pleasing, or uncertainty during life transitions.
Finally, we’ll focus on real-life change. Insight matters, and insight alone usually isn’t enough. Together, we’ll build practical tools that fit your actual life–not a rigid or idealized version of it. That might include learning how to interrupt anxiety spirals, regulate overwhelming emotions, set boundaries with less guilt, or respond to stress with more flexibility and self-trust. Over time, we’ll experiment, adjust, and build approaches that genuinely work for you.
My Approach
My work is informed by evidence-based approaches, primarily CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) and DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy).
CBT and DBT work well together because they help us understand both the patterns underneath your struggles and the practical skills needed to respond differently.
I also integrate positive psychology, which means we won’t only focus on what feels painful or difficult–we’ll also identify your strengths, values, resilience, and what’s already working in your life.
My training in these approaches is extensive. I hold a Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology, have been a licensed psychologist in Oregon since 2013, and am the co-author of a two-volume book on DBT.
That expertise informs everything I do, but it’s not the point of therapy. You are.
Together, we’ll work to understand the patterns keeping you stuck while building practical ways to respond differently in your day-to-day life.
Depending on your needs, that may include:
- Understanding the thought patterns and beliefs fueling anxiety, perfectionism, burnout, or people-pleasing
- Learning how to respond to stress and overwhelming emotions with more flexibility and self-compassion
- Building practical coping tools that feel realistic and sustainable
- Strengthening boundaries and communication in relationships
- Staying more present instead of getting pulled into worry, urgency, or self-criticism
- Developing a stronger connection to your values, needs, and sense of self
The goal isn’t perfection or becoming a completely different person.
The goal is helping you move through life with more clarity, steadiness, intention, and self-trust.
What We’ll Do Together
Each session is collaborative. We might:
- Explore patterns keeping you stuck in anxiety, burnout, over-responsibility, or uncertainty.
- Identify core beliefs underneath your struggles–the stories you’ve learned about yourself, your worth, or what you “should” be doing
- Notice what’s happening in real time–your thoughts, emotional responses, and body reactions
- Build practical tools tailored to what you actually need
- Practice responding differently both in and outside of sessions
- Track progress to see what’s shifting and what needs adjustment
Real change takes time and practice.
That’s why I’ll often ask you to try something new, notice what happens, and bring it back to discuss.
Sometimes a strategy clicks immediately; sometimes it takes a few tries before it feels natural.
That’s typical–and it’s exactly how meaningful change actually happens.
My approach to therapy can help you:
- Identify the thought patterns, beliefs, and behaviors keeping you stuck
- Interrupt anxious spirals and respond to stress with more flexibility and self-compassion
- Regulate intense emotions with more confidence and flexibility
- Set boundaries that actually hold in real-life situations
- Feel more grounded, intentional, and present–even when life is genuinely demanding
- Create sustainable ways to care for yourself without guilt
- Navigate life transitions with more clarity about who you are and what matters to you
You don’t have to keep moving through life feeling this overwhelmed, depleted, or disconnected from yourself.
Change is possible. It takes time, practice, and a willingness to try something different. With the right support, you can learn to move through anxiety, burnout, people-pleasing patterns, and life transitions differently.
Over time, it’s possible to feel more steady, more yourself, and more in control–without feeling like you have to carry everything alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What’s the difference between CBT and DBT? Do I need both?
A: CBT helps us understand how thoughts, emotions, and behaviors interact–and how certain patterns can reinforce anxiety, overwhelm, or self-criticism
DBT builds on that foundation by adding practical skills for navigating emotions, stress, relationships, and difficult situations more effectively.
Most people benefit from using both approaches together because they help us understand not only why you’re stuck, but also how to respond differently.
Q: How often do I need to come to therapy for this to work?
A: Most people find that weekly sessions create the momentum for real change. Some people start with weekly sessions and later shift to every other week once they feel more grounded. We’ll figure out what rhythm works best for you based on what you’re working on and what you can realistically commit to.
Q: Will I have homework between sessions?
A: Yes, probably. Not in the traditional “write an essay” way. Homework might be practicing a new skill, noticing patterns as they happen, trying a different response to a familiar situation, or simply paying attention to what shows up. The goal is to bring your real life into the work so therapy isn’t just something that happens in a bubble–it’s something that helps you move through your actual life differently. We’ll talk about what feels realistic for your schedule and life.
Q: I’ve tried therapy before and didn’t see much change. Will this be different?
A: Maybe. It depends on what wasn’t working. If your previous therapy felt too passive or insight-focused without practical tools, this approach will feel different because we’re actively building new responses and skills. If you weren’t ready to do the work between sessions, that’s worth knowing–because real change does require practice outside of therapy. If you didn’t feel safe or seen by your therapist, that changes everything. In our first conversation, we can talk about what you’re looking for and whether this approach is a good fit.
Q: How long does it take to see results?
A: Some people notice shifts fairly quickly–maybe within a few weeks you’re sleeping better or catching anxious spirals sooner. Deeper changes (shifting core beliefs, building new patterns, feeling genuinely different in your relationships) usually take a few months of consistent work. The timeline depends on what you’re working on, how long the patterns have been in place, and how much you’re able to practice new skills between sessions. What matters is that you’re moving in the direction of change, not that it happens overnight.
Q: This sounds like a lot of work. Are you sure it’s worth my time?
A: I’ll be honest: it does take work, both in sessions and between them. Here’s what I know: anxiety, burnout, people-pleasing, and being stuck in life transitions are already taking up enormous amounts of your time and energy. Therapy helps you get some of that back by actually addressing what’s driving these patterns, instead of just managing them.
Most people find that the small shifts–sleeping better, worrying less, setting a boundary without guilt, feeling more like themselves–add up to a life that feels genuinely different. And that’s worth the effort.
Q: What if I’m worried this approach won’t work for me?
A: That’s a legitimate concern, and I don’t take it lightly. That’s partly why we have a free consultation first. We can talk about what you’re hoping to change, what you’ve tried before, and whether you think we might be a good fit. I’d rather you know upfront if you have concerns than discover them three months in. Therapy only works if there’s genuine collaboration and trust.