Licensed Professional Counselor | Certified Clinical Trauma Professional Level II | EMDR-Certified Therapist | EMDR Intensives | Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ | Virtual Reality (VR) Therapy | EMDR-VR | Clinical Supervisor 

If You're Here...

You may have reached a point where you're exhausted from trying to hold everything together. Maybe you've been told you're resilient because you keep showing up for work, taking care of your family, and doing what needs to be done. But underneath that, you're anxious, overwhelmed, emotionally numb, constantly on guard, or wondering why the same patterns keep showing up despite everything you've tried.

Many of the people I work with are thoughtful, capable, and incredibly hard on themselves. They often ask questions like, "Why can't I just get over this?" or "I know why I react this way, so why doesn't it change?" The answer is usually much simpler—and much kinder—than they expect.

Trauma isn't just something we remember. It's something our brain and body adapt to. Those adaptations may have helped you survive difficult experiences, but they can continue long after the danger has passed. The good news is that the same brain that learned those survival patterns is capable of learning something new.

How I Work

No two people experience trauma the same way, so I don't believe in a one-size-fits-all approach to therapy. Every person brings a unique history, nervous system, strengths, and goals, and treatment should reflect that.

I tend to be an active therapist. I'll ask thoughtful questions, notice patterns, explain what's happening in your brain and nervous system, and help you make sense of reactions that may have felt confusing or frustrating for years. Rather than simply talking about problems, we'll work together to understand them, process them, and create meaningful, lasting change.

Clients often describe me as genuine, approachable, and easy to talk to. That's important to me because healing happens in the context of a trusting relationship. I want therapy to feel like a real conversation with someone who is fully present—not someone hiding behind clinical language or silently nodding for fifty minutes.

My approach is structured, collaborative, and grounded in trauma-informed care. Depending on your needs, our work may focus on nervous system regulation, trauma reprocessing, strengthening resilience, improving relationships, or helping you reconnect with parts of yourself that have been buried beneath years of survival.

Trauma work is deeply meaningful, but I don't believe therapy has to feel heavy every minute. Some sessions involve tears. Others involve laughter. Sometimes both happen in the same hour. Humor, when it comes naturally, reminds us that trauma doesn't get to define every part of who we are.

One of my favorite moments is when a client catches themselves laughing after months—or even years—of feeling emotionally stuck. Not because what happened to them was funny, but because they're reconnecting with parts of themselves that trauma convinced them they'd lost: their curiosity, their confidence, and their capacity for joy.

I'll bring my training, experience, and clinical expertise to the room, but you remain the expert on your own life. Together, we'll work to understand not only what happened to you, but how your mind and body adapted to help you survive—and how those same systems can begin to support healing instead.

Whether you're seeking EMDR therapy for PTSD, treatment for complex trauma, or specialized trauma therapy as an adult, my goal is to provide care that is thoughtful, individualized, and rooted in approaches supported by research. I offer both in-person therapy in Chandler, Arizona, and secure telehealth services throughout Arizona.

Areas of Focus

I work exclusively with adults and specialize in treating:

• Complex PTSD and childhood trauma

• Anxiety, panic, and chronic stress

• Betrayal trauma and relationship wounds

• Grief and traumatic loss

• First responder and military trauma

• Medical trauma, chronic pain and illness

• Religious trauma and moral injury

• Attachment wounds and relationship patterns

• Depression related to unresolved trauma

• Life transitions and identity changes

Whether your struggles stem from one overwhelming event or years of experiences that slowly shaped how you see yourself and the world, therapy is tailored to your unique history and goals.

Specialized Trauma Treatment

Many people come to me after they've already been in therapy. They've gained insight, but insight alone hasn't changed the way their body responds.

Because trauma affects the brain, body, emotions, and beliefs about ourselves, I draw from several evidence-based approaches to create treatment that's individualized rather than formulaic.

Depending on your needs, therapy may include:

• Standard EMDR (with Advanced Protocols)
• EMDR Intensives
• Ketamine-Assisted EMDR Therapy™ (KA-EMDR™) (in collaboration with an external prescriber) to support emotional access and trauma processing for select adult clients.
• EMDR-VR (Virtual Reality–Enhanced EMDR) for targeted phobias, exposure-based trauma work, and performance-related anxiety.
• Parts work and IFS-informed therapy
• Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT Tapping)
• Attachment-focused therapy
• Nervous system regulation and somatic approaches
• Mindfulness and other evidence-based trauma interventions

These specialized EMDR services are designed for treatment-resistant trauma, complex PTSD, dissociation, chronic stress, and entrenched trauma responses.

Attachment & Developmental Trauma Expertise

My post-graduate certification in Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health informs my work with adults whose anxiety, relationship patterns, and self-worth struggles stem from early attachment trauma. I help clients address both the original trauma and the long-standing nervous system adaptations that developed in response.

We'll decide together what makes the most sense for your goals, your history, and your pace.

Experience, Training & Certifications

For more than 28 years, I've worked across behavioral health in hospitals, community mental health, child welfare, non-profit leadership, and private practice. Those experiences reinforced something I continue to see every day: many of the struggles people carry into adulthood make sense when viewed through the lens of trauma, attachment, and the remarkable ways the nervous system learns to survive.

Today my practice is dedicated exclusively to helping adults heal from trauma using evidence-based, neuroscience-informed treatment.

Relevant Trainings

• EMDRIA-Certified EMDR Therapist since 2024
• Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP Level II) since 2017 (Arizona Trauma Institute and International Association of Trauma Professionals)
• 33rd Annual International Trauma Conference: Psychological Trauma, Embodiment, and the Restoration of the Self
• Trauma-Focused CBT with Childhood Traumatic Grief MUSC
• Arizona Child and Adolescent Survivor Initiative – NAU 
• Structured Sensory Interventions -National Institute for Trauma and Loss in Children
• EMDR for Kids: Trauma-Informed Strategies for Young Clients and Their Grown-Ups – Christine Mark-Griffin, LCW
• American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children Advanced Training Summit 2017
• Nurturing Parenting Program Seminar and Facilitator Training
• Circle of Security Parenting Training – 2012
• Infant and Family Clinical Studies – The Harris Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Training Institute 2013
• Haunted: EMDR for First Responders and Professionals in the Trenches – Dr. Robbie Adler-Tapia, PhD
• David Kessler on Healing Grief: Finding Comfort After Death, Divorce & Betrayal
• The Science of Energy Healing 1 – ACEP
• Emotional Freedom Techniques Professional Skills 1 & 2 – Robert Schwarz/Michael DeMolina
• Understanding the Fire Service for Mental Health Clinicians – International Association of Fire Fighters
• Attachment, Trauma & Psychotherapy: Neural Integration as a Pathway to Resilience and Well-Being – Dan Siegel, MD
• Prenatal Trauma: Multicultural Perspective of Trauma Treatment Arizona Trauma Institute – James Wilson, DBH
• EMDR Basic Training Level 1 & 2 – Roy Kiessling (2010 &2016)
• Neurophysiology of Addiction & Brain Based Relapse Prevention – Tim Worden, Ph.D
• Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention for Tourette’s (CBIT) – University of Utah
• EMDR & IFS PARTS Protocol – Dr. Kendhal Hart, LPC-S
• EMDR 2.0: An Enhanced Version of EMDR Therapy – Ad de Jongh/Suzy Matthijssen
• Simplifying Complex PTSD: New Treatment Appraoches3/27/236 – Ad de Jongh/Suzy Matthijssen
• RTEP(Recent Traumatic Episode Protocol/GTEP (Group Traumatic Event Protocol/GREP (Group Resource Enhancement Protocol) – Deborah Silveria with EMDR Professional Training
• EMDR for Chronic Pain and Illness – Personal Transformation Institute
• EMDR in the Treatment of Pain - Mark Grant
• EMDR with Autism and Neurodiverse Characteristics – EMDR Advance Training and Distance Learning
• Overcoming Trauma-Related Shame and Self-Loathing  (Dr. Janina Fisher)
• DeTUR: Urge Reduction Protocol for Addictions and Dysfunctional Behaviors-The Accelerated Adaptive Information Processing Model  - A.J. Popky 
• EMDR and Traumatic Brain Injuries 
• Intro to  Ketamine Assisted EMDR Therapy™ (KA-EMDR™), experiental training and consultation.
• Clinical Competencies in Treating Dissociative Identities - Dr. Jamie Marich
• Narcissistic Abuse Treatment Certification Training (In Progress)

Ready When You Are

Reaching out for therapy can feel intimidating, especially if you're used to handling everything on your own. You don't need to know exactly where to start. You don't need to have the right words.

You just need a place where your experiences make sense, where healing feels possible, and where you don't have to carry everything by yourself anymore.

If you're ready to explore whether we're a good fit, I'd be honored to meet you.

An EMDRIA Certified Therapist™ has engaged in at least 20 hours of consultation with an EMDRIA Approved Consultant™ for EMDR and has practiced their skills with at least 25 different clients in at least 50 EMDR sessions. An EMDRIA Certified Therapist™ has voluntarily met standards of consultation, clinical practice, and continuing education to provide EMDR therapy. An EMDRIA Certified Therapist™ is committed to fulfill ethical standards and is engaged in continuing education. To maintain this certification, a therapist must continue to satisfy the EMDRIA requirement including completion of continuing education requirements and adherence to ethical standards.