Get to know your Counselor...
My Story
I am a first born daughter, sister, wife, mother of two and was born and raised in a Minnesota small town. I enjoy reading, being a psychology nerd, do-it-yourself projects, getting together with family and friends, being active, listening to music and singing off key and deepening my faith and spirituality. I've had my share of traumatic life events, healed from them, continue to heal and am journeying onward in an authentic fashion as my story further unfolds.
Had you told me I would have been a counselor in high school I would have never believed you. Looking back over my life and reflecting on what I know now I would say that it makes complete sense that I am in fact a counselor. I obtained my Master's Degree in Adlerian Counseling and Psychotherapy in November 2017 from Adler Graduate School and have been in the field since 2015. I became a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor in March 2021.
My Why
There is a need. A need for people to fully live without undue fear in a manner that perpetuates kindness, acceptance, and joy. A need to understand our emotions, healthily express them, and use them to assist us in managing our lives and living out our full potential. A need to be true and live from our truth because achieving authentic and healthy connection, belonging and purpose cannot otherwise happen.
My Style
My approach is both nurturing and direct and you will not always leave a therapy session feeling "happy." If you do not experience a variety of emotions and work on them in real time then I am doing you a dis-service. I want to equip you for handling emotions and actions in ways that promote a healthy way of life in line with your true self. My aim is to guide you through the process of therapeutic change, provide tools to use outside of therapy sessions and to assist you in recognizing different ways to grow. Counseling is uncomfortable (as it should be) because change is uncomfortable. My aim is to be what is needed at different stages in the therapeutic process.
Additionally, talk therapy is not suitable or effective for everyone. Utilizing a variety of different evidence based therapeutic practices is necessary for healing and to gain understanding. Some experiences and feelings cannot be put into words, but nonetheless they are there for us to explore. I am a continual learner to make sure the methods I use in therapy are ethical and of quality.