646-660-0884
New York
New York
United States
Bio
I am a NY State licensed Psychologist and EMDRIA Certified EMDR Therapist with extensive experience working with demographically diverse populations with a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic issues. My specialties include working with individuals struggling with complex trauma, anxiety and mood disorders, addiction, chronic medical and pain conditions (i.e., HIV/AIDS, HCV, fibromyalgia, etc.). I have extensive experience working with family of origin attachment issues and relational conflict, career and life transitions, creative blocks, loss and bereavement, identity confusion and low self-esteem, as well as work with identified populations (i.e., LGBTQ and performing artists).
My career began treating adults and children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS at Harlem Hospital. This experience was expanded to include transgender youth of color pursuing gender transition at the Health & Education Alternatives for Teens (HEAT) Program in Brooklyn. I quickly learned that a “one size fits all” model of care is insufficient. This was further proven with my subsequent work as a psychologist at Freedom Institute, an intensive outpatient substance abuse treatment program in NYC. While there I developed the curriculum for and ran the evening “DBT Skills in Action” therapy groups. I also provided individual therapy to adolescents and adults with substance use disorders.
Now working a full-time private practice on the Upper West Side of NYC, I tailor my treatment to the uniqueness of the individual. I am focused on clients’ presenting conditions, as well as being sensitive to issues of culture, ethnicity, sexual orientation/identity, disability, religion/spirituality, and socioeconomic status. I have dedicated myself to increasing my skill set to allow for more targeted and individualized care. I have completed intensive training in a variety of experiential modalities including Attachment-Focused EMDR with Laurel Parnell; Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) with Behavioral Tech; Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT); multiple Mindfulness Based Interventions (MB-Relapse Prevention, MB-Cognitive Therapy, MB-Pain Management, and MB-Stress Reduction); Harm Reduction Therapy; and Family Systems Therapy. I am also an Advanced Psychodrama Student in the Hudson Valley Psychodrama Institute’s Core Training Program and am pursuing certification as a Somatic Experience Practitioner (SEP) with the SE™ Trauma Institute. Knowing how nature has always been my place of healing and grounding energetically, I also try to bring elements of the natural world into the therapeutic space, with my plant-filled décor, and thru guided imagery and mindful therapeutic nature walks in Central Park.
I believe that we all have an inherent capacity for growth and change. It is only our insecurities that prevent us from achieving our optimal potential. Within a collaborative therapeutic space, I strive to create a sanctuary of compassion and safety. This allows clients to begin their journey of self-discovery and emotional healing as they work to overcome personal and societal obstacles.
In my prior career as a professional ballet dancer, I came to understand the importance of creating balance by nurturing the “whole self.” Thus I utilize an integrative strength-based therapeutic approach that emphasizes the mind-body-spirit connection. This promotes healing at a neurobiological level by fostering and respecting a person’s own inner resources and wisdom. I encourage the development of skills “in action” designed to increase self-awareness and to improve one’s ability to tolerate, embrace, and respond to experiences as they are in any given moment, in a conscious manner rather than in an emotionally-driven reactive manner or on automatic pilot mode. My goal is to help each individual discover and create their own “life worth living.”
“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” ~ Emerson
Additional Information
Credential/Qualification: Ph.D.
Years in Practice: 10+
EMDR Status:
- Completed Approved EMDR Basic Training
- EMDRIA Certified EMDR Therapist
Approving / Certifying Organization: EMDRIA
Populations Served:
- Adolescents (13-17)
- Adults
- Couples
- Families
- Group
Specialty Areas:
- Addictions
- Alcohol/Substance Abuse
- Anger/Stress Management
- Chronic Illness/Medical Issues
- Chronic Pain
- Depression
- Eating Disorders
- Panic/Anxiety Disorders
- Performance Enhancement
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
- Sexual/Physical/Emotional Abuse
Languages:
English
EMDR Qualifications
Date completed basic EMDR training: 2019
Trainer: Laurel Parnell
Date completed EMDR Advanced Clinical Workshop and Refresher Course (Part 3): 2019
Trainer: Laurel Parnell