About me

I became licensed as an MFT with the California Board of Behavioral Sciences in 2004 and have been licensed in good standing since that time.  

EXPERIENCE

I have over 30 years experience working as a community service provider in a number of capacities.  I worked as a social worker with Children's Services (CPS) for over 7 years while I worked diligently to protect children from abuse and neglect and to ensure that they were connected with services within their community to enrich and improve their lives and the lives of their familiies.  I have had the pleasure of working with a diverse population, varying in age, race, gender, ethnic background, sexual orientation and economic status, including military families.  I was the spouse of a military member, was a key volunteer the Camp Pendleton Hopsital Liaison for CPS for a number of years and sat as a voting member on a case review committee.  

In the past, I have worked with fine organizations within the community providing mental health services at the Torrance South Bay YMCA and Redondo Beach Salvation Army.  For six years, I worked with children and their families while providing school-based mental health and outpatient counseling services at  Kedren Community Mental Health Clinic and Psychiatric Hospital.  While at Kedren, I also provided service in the MAT, Adult Out-Patient, Adult Triage and Children's In-Patient settings.   I became proficient at providing Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to children during that time and became trained in Triple P a structured Positive Parenting Program for children and teens. Most recently, I worked for Del Amo Hospital in the capacity of social work staff in most of their units.

I have worked with many individuals, adults and children to work through and deal with trauma whether it be from childhood, abuse of all kinds, neglect, victim or witness of crime, bullying, being in an accident, natural disaster, school or public shootings, assault, as well working extensively with military members veterans and currently serving, medical staff and first responders.
 

SPECIALTIES
 

Some of my specialties include working with:

Trauma Focused treatment, children using art, play and sand therapy, Victims of Abuse and Trauma and Post Traumatic Stress, Families dealing with behavioral problems and diffiuclties with parenting, Military affiliation (current and history), first responders, depression and anxiety, clients involved with DCFS / Children's Services and have an abuse history, Victim / Witness of Crime, as well as Stress and Anger Management.
 

PHILOSOPHY OF TREATMENT

It is important to understand that our relationship will be of a professional nature.  I only accept clients in my private practice whom I believe have the capacity to resolve their own problems with my assistance.  I believe that when people become more accepting of themselves, they are more capable of finding happiness and contentment in their lives.  However, self-awareness and self-acceptance are goals that sometimes take a long time to achieve.  Some clients need only a few counseling sessions to achieve these goals, while others may require months, or even years of counseling.  As a client, or guardian of a client, you are in complete control and may end our counseling relationship at any point.  In return, I also ask that you understand if I see a clinical reason for terminating our relationship.   If counseling is successful, the client should feel that he or she is able to face life's challenges in the future by independently utilizing coping skills we will develop in session together.
 

Although our sessions may be very intimate psychologically, it is important for you to realize that we have a professional relationship and for that reason, our contact will be limited to our therapy sessions.
 

I assure you that my services will be rendered in a professional manner consistent with the accepted legal and ethical standards as determined by the state of California.  Please note that it is impossible to guarantee any specific results regarding your counseling goals.  However, we will work together to achieve the best possible outcome.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
 

California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT)

South Bay / Long Beach Chapter of CAMFT

CONTINUING EDUCATION
 

I am committed to continuing my education and staying abreast of current literature and studies in the fields of Psychology, Counseling, Social Work and Marriage and Family Therapy.
 

If you think that I may be a good fit to work with you, please contact me to conduct a consultation or to schedule your first session.  At that time, I can provide additional information you would like and answer any questions that you may have.