Services
- Individual
- Couples
About My Clients
Our nervous systems get "programmed" from the time we're in utero, based on everything we live through. Out of that we build survival strategies to get our needs met. They were incredibly effective at the time, and may not be serving you now. Most of my clients are adults who've realized something isn't working anymore but can't think their way out of it. Our work is to uncover those strategies without judgement or shame to find a new way of relating to the word.
My Background and Approach
Before become a counselor I was the executive director of Warrior Surf Foundation in Folly Beach, SC. I helped build the wellbeing programming they use with veterans and their families, and ran daily operations. Much of how I practice now was informed by those experiences I'm a Licensed Professional Counselor Associate and a National Certified Counselor, certified in Integrative Somatic Trauma Therapy, practicing under the supervision of Dr. Maia Gill, PhD (SC #1202). Somatic therapy is a way to connect the brain and the body. The goal is becoming a person who has capacity to be with what life throws at them. Mostly it's about choice: deciding how you negotiate your life instead of feeling like things just happen to you. I'm also a registered yoga teacher, which gives me a different perspective on how somatic interventions work in the body, particularly breathwork, mindfulness, and movement. I draw on Sensorimotor Psychotherapy and Somatic Experiencing alongside CBT, DBT, and ACT.
My Personal Beliefs and Interests
I offer walk-and-talk sessions (where appropriate) because being outside gets people in connection with nature, which can help to make clients feel more grounded. There's also something about not having direct, consistent eye contact that's more comfortable for a lot of people. Walking can also help give you a way to physically discharge the energy that comes with big emotions, I use a sliding scale based on the Green Bottle Method, adapted from Alexis J. Cunningfolk's work on economic justice. Clients self-assess where they fall, because cost be the thing that decides who gets care. I'm not a good match for people who want instant results or who aren't ready to do the work, and I don't work with active psychosis or schizophrenia. If that's where you are, I'll will help to point you to the right treatment.