Services
About My Clients
You may be experiencing anxiety and depression and looking for tools to express your emotions and manage your physical symptoms. You may over-intellectualize and have difficulty connecting to, understanding, and expressing your feelings. You may be grappling with decisions about the direction of your life and struggle with discipline, work-life balance, and negative self-talk. My clients are professionals and/or creatives, adolescents or young adults trying to get unstuck.
My Background and Approach
The messages we internalize, from childhood through adulthood, affect our bodies and relationships. Learning tools to mitigate over-intellectualization of feelings and experiences can help us to more deeply know ourselves and empathize with others. Voice and breathwork can be used to assist the expression of thoughts and feelings simultaneously, leading to a more integrated experience of ourselves and more grounded relationships with others. By resourcing ourselves, we can learn to stay rooted while seeking connection and to find that joy in life is available under any circumstances. I take my cues from my clients in terms of finding a balance between verbal processing and using the arts. I am a music psychotherapist with 20 years of practice, a certified music therapist, a licensed creative arts therapist, and trained in Dr. Diane Austin’s method of Vocal Psychotherapy. I also run a non-profit music therapy program, teach at New York University, and offer supervision to therapists.
My Personal Beliefs and Interests
I believe that the best way to make changes to the way we experience life is to integrate our thinking with our feelings, honor our bodies, and find strength in grounded self-compassion. It is never too late to establish new habits and to change perspective. The belief that we can "go it alone" can lead to hyper-vigilance, perfectionism, and a deep feeling of always needing to strive for approval from others. Through my music training, therapy, and music therapy training, I learned that I couldn't outsmart my feelings, that life is full of changes I can't control, and that being kind to myself is the starting point. I believe that trauma and pain live in the body, even if the head has it all figured out. I believe that how a song can make us feel completely understood reflects the power of music to hold meaning and feelings simultaneously. I believe in social justice, continual anti-bias work, awareness of privilege, and maintaining a sense of humor. I believe in you.