I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist but my real training comes from being married with two sons.  I received my A.B. in Psychology from Harvard in 1994 and my M.A. in Counseling with a specialization in marriage and family therapy from Gordon-Conwell Seminary in 1997.  I have practiced counseling in a variety of contexts in order to study the vast range of human functioning and to understand which counseling modalities are effective in treating various issues. I have counseled clients in an in-patient setting in a psychiatric hospital.  For years I did individual therapy, pre-marital counseling, marriage counseling, family counseling and group therapy in out-patient settings.  Before moving to the state of WA and going into private practice, I was the director of client services at a small center in Boston, MA which specialized in pregnancy counseling issues and abortion recovery counseling.   

Through all of this, I have learned that counseling interventions must be tailored to you, the client, and based not only on the specific issues you’d like to see addressed but also on your unique personality, history and family background.  Life is not “one size fits all”.  There are two main reasons we become dissatisfied with ourselves and our relationships. One reason is we become fixed in the way we think, feel and behave and it is difficult to act differently even though we know it would benefit us and those we love.  The other reason is that we try to make adjustments in the way we behave but the changes “don’t work”, either because they are not right for our personality type or because there are underlying issues which need to be addressed.

For this reason, I incorporate the Enneagram personality system into my work with clients.  The Enneagram describes nine distinct personality types and the relationships between the types.  It is a very powerful tool for understanding your world view and how it is similar to or different from the world view of others.  The Enneagram not only gives you surprisingly accurate insight into how you think, feel and behave but it also provides you with a roadmap for growth.  Instead of trying to make yourself into something you are not, the Enneagram helps you to make changes that are appropriate for you.  This leads to true growth and more fulfilling relationships.