Professional Background

I am a Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT), licensed in the state of California, and I have been seeing clients since 2019. I hold an MA in Integral Counseling Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in San Francisco. I am based in Nevada City in the Sierra foothills, and I currently work remotely over Zoom with occasional in-person sessions when possible.

I have extensive, advanced training in a model of therapy called AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy). AEDP is an experiential therapy, meaning that we’ll spend less time delving into your past and more time slowing down to notice, feel, and explore what is happening right now both in your body and between us. AEDP is about building a secure connection together where we welcome and explore all your emotions—be it grief, anger, and fear, or joy, pride, and excitement. Our society often encourages us to distract from difficult feelings, through Netflix, social media, alcohol and the like. Internally, depression and anxiety are two main ways our brains help us avoid feeling. Together, we will turn toward what has been difficult to feel alone, processing these emotions to completion and understanding the wisdom they hold for you. This often leads to feeling more connected, compassionate, calm, and confident, both within yourself and in your relationships.

I also have advanced training in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) for couples. Although I currently work only with individuals, I frequently draw upon these skills to help with issues that cause people to feel stuck, frustrated and alone in their relationships. We will work together to better understand what is happening under the surface during conflict and help you find your way back to connection and fulfillment.

Lastly, I am a certified practitioner of Psychedelic Assisted Therapy. Research has been showing that compounds such as psilocybin and MDMA can be highly effective in the treatment of PTSD, depression and anxiety. While awaiting FDA approval for therapeutic use, many people are already using these medicines on their own in an attempt to improve mental health and overall wellbeing. Whether this is done by taking mushrooms in nature or participating in weekend ayahuasca retreats, what is often missing is a holding container where these experiences can be skillfully unpacked, understood, and integrated. I use my knowledge, extensive training, and 15+ years of personal experience navigating these expanded realms to assist clients who have been having psychedelic experiences on their own, helping to transform them into lasting personal growth.

Professional Training & Certifications

Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy (AEDP)

Certified AEDP Therapist

300+ hours of ongoing training and 2.5 years of 1-on-1 mentorship

Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)

300+ hours of training and 2 years of 1-on-1 mentorship

Internal Family Systems (IFS)

Also known as parts work

Certified Psychedelic Assisted Therapy Provider

Integrative Psychiatry Institute

MDMA-Assisted Therapy

MAPS training for post-FDA-approval providers

Hakomi

1 year of training

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

Brainspotting

Certified Massage Therapist

My Journey to Becoming a Therapist

Growing up as a gay male in conservative Pennsylvania, I often grappled with a feeling of not belonging. This sparked a curiosity to explore other cultures and countries. I spent most of my twenties living abroad in Asia, South America, and Europe, studying Japanese, French, and Spanish. This led to graduate studies and a career in language translation and interpreting. I loved serving as a bridge to help others connect linguistically and culturally.

Since adolescence, my love for body-focused athletics like gymnastics, diving, running, and rock climbing meant having to deal with injuries on a regular basis. As a result, I developed an insatiable desire to understand how the body works and heals, which grew into an adjunctive career as a massage therapist. As I interacted with bodywork clients over the years, the inextricable link among body, mind, and emotions became clear. I was fascinated by this connection and gradually started to invite in clients’ emotional experiences for processing during bodywork sessions, and the results with many clients were amazing.

My desire to know more about how to work with the mind and emotions led to an MA in Integral Counseling Psychology from CIIS in San Francisco and studies in somatic therapy through the Hakomi Institute of California and the AEDP Institute. I now practice as a holistic therapist, helping clients integrate body, mind and heart for the purpose of healing from various degrees of relational trauma, past and present.

My personal journey of inner work began in 2008 after facing one failed relationship after the next in my 20s and 30s. This initially took the form of spending two years living in the forest to explore the depths of my own loneliness. I started with meditation, mindfulness and the healing power of nature. Within me, I discovered a massive accumulation of unprocessed grief from a childhood of feeling aloneness and an absence of belonging. As hard as it was, I followed the instinct to allow myself to feel the grief, one wave at a time, over several months. When I emerged from this bittersweet process, the loneliness faded and I found myself able to connect to joy and inner peace for the first time in my life. This experience taught me first-hand about the power and wisdom our emotional system has to help us heal.

As I work with clients today, I continue to engage in my own healing practices, all deeply rooted in connection. These include my relationships with nature, my life partner, community, plant medicines, and, of course, my own therapist.

This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
As an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all!
Even if they're a crowd of sorrows,
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture,
still treat each guest honorably.
He may be clearing you out
for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
meet them at the door laughing,
and invite them in.

Be grateful for whoever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.

- Rumi -