I was raised in sunny Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where I spent much time in the water. I first came to North Carolina as a young child, visiting the creeks and forests of Cherokee and Balsam in the Smoky Mountains. There, I hunted mica by day and captured lightening bugs at dusk. I returned to the Smokies in 1992 and fell in love all over again. I am refreshed by the ocean and the mountains and I wanted both! I also wanted a big, southern city to serve a variety of people. I moved to the greater Charlotte area in 1994.
I come from a line of healers and helpers including doctors, nurses, and social workers-therapists. I wanted to help people and I have a natural curiosity about the how and why of human behavior. Therapy helped me very much. I wanted to offer that to others.
My purpose is to bring the sum total of my focus, energy, education/training, and experience/skill to every session, in order to provide you with the highest quality psychotherapy, so that you achieve your goals in therapy, and in life. I will gently guide you to recognize your destructive or stuck patterns, as well as your strengths and assets, so you can discover your possibilities and take your life where you want it to go. Many clients say they learn how to think about their problems in a new way and from a wider perspective.
My treatment approach is based on sound scientific principles of human behavior and established methods of effective psychotherapy. I do not rely on one technique or protocol. I have deep knowledge of attachment and emotion-focused psychotherapy. I also use techniques from Mindfulness (present moment judgment-free awareness), Gestalt therapy (an here-and-now Somatic approach), Somatic Experiencing (to process trauma by retraining the nervous system), and Psychodynamic Psychotherapy (making the unconscious conscious and exploring powerful early experiences). My approach is down to earth, direct, sensitive and caring. I am most often described as warm, analytical, and logical. My approach is fun because you will discover what it is that you need and want. It is challenging because you will look at your part in your outcomes.
My greatest asset is my clinical judgement based on more than 25 years of full-time practice. Together, we will get to know you deeply AS AN INDIVIDUAL who has a unique history. I have no political agenda. Neutrality and refraining from personal agenda is the disciplined, well-trained, time-honored approach to any good psychotherapy. Beware of therapists working their own agenda!
Many have asked me “What is your world view?” My understanding of human nature and my ethical code are based on and influenced by the Judeo-Christian principles that have shaped our culture since its inception. I believe in individual responsibility, self-determination and personal freedom. If requested, I will provide integrated Christian counseling. I do not push my faith onto others. I welcome clients of all faiths and of no faith, and I will walk with you where you are.
The most important part of the training for any accomplished psychotherapist is to have been in one’s own therapy and to have improved the areas of woundedness and distortion that have been impediments in the therapist’s life. I have worked in my personal therapy both individually and in group therapy throughout my career. Has your therapist?
I invite you to ask me about my personal therapy work and to ask any other therapist you are considering seeing. A competent therapist should be happy to share with you about this part of their training. If they aren’t willing, or if they bristle at such questions, let that inform your decision.
If my approach sounds attractive to you and you are curious, call me at 704-776-6438.