Clinical Social Work
As a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) currently practicing in Vermont, I balance multiple diverse roles in my mosaic of a professional world. I have worn many hats throughout my decades of professional practice including program coordinator, assistant director, supervisor, clinical therapist, clinical forensic specialist, crisis counselor, advocate, consultant, lecturer, and researcher in a variety of multi- and inter-disciplinary settings. I attended Miami University (Ohio) for undergraduate studies, where I received a BA in Psychology with a minor in Criminology, and earned a MSW in Social Work at Columbia University School of Social Work (CSSW).
Vermont Center for Resiliency
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As Integrative Practice Advisor and Clinical Supervisor at the Vermont Center for Resiliency (VCR)—a community practice of independent clinicians committed to trauma-oriented, resiliency-based, and social justice frameworks—I offer individual therapy, supervision, consultation, and creative programming. Significant clinical practice experience includes work with trauma, grief, loss, violence, victimization, death and dying, illness, injury, and transitions.
I believe that the therapeutic process is a sacred space where change, healing, transformation, discovery, and insight emerge. Each therapeutic relationship is unique and I collaborate with individual clients to discover the integration of various therapeutic modalities to best support the therapeutic process. Some of these integrative therapeutic modalities include yoga, mindfulness, breathwork, dreamwork, journaling, and Narrative Medicine.
For over 20 years, I served New York City individuals and communities as program coordinator, supervisor, grant-writer, clinical therapist, clinical forensic specialist, crisis counselor, advocate, researcher, and consultant at a variety of multi-disciplinary agencies and institutions. It was in these capacities that I gained significant experience working with trauma, violence, victimization, abuse, neglect, life-threatening illness, death, dying, grief, and loss.
Dreamwork, Psychedelic Research,
Spirituality, & Narrative Medicine
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During my undergraduate studies, I was introduced to an exploration of altered states of consciousness in a course titled Dreams, Dreaming, and Dreamers. Since that initial dive into practice and research on Dreamwork, my former professor turn mentor and I have continued a study of dreams, altered states of consciousness, and Embodied Imagination. This work has been a consistent, curious, and ever-evolving thread throughout my clinical training, professional practice, and personal life.
I engaged in Psychedelic Psychotherapy training and was a Psychedelic Research Study Therapist in the groundbreaking NYU Cancer Anxiety Psilocybin Research Study. This experience expanded my curiosity and understanding about the therapeutic value of altered states of consciousness as a tool in healing journeys.
“Narrative Medicine is an international discipline at the intersection of the humanities, the arts, clinical practice, and health care justice with conceptual foundations in narratology, phenomenology, and liberatory social theory.” (cuimc.columbia.edu) In 2018, I used a Teaching and Learning Innovation award to attend Narrative Medicine and the Creative Impulse, a workshop that deepened my practice in the use of story, language, and arts in therapeutic care. I have partnered with Columbia University’s Narrative Medicine (NMED) program to host NMED graduate students in facilitating contemplative and reflective workshops for clinicians at Vermont Center for Resiliency as an opportunity to integrate this interdisciplinary framework.
I believe in staying curious, diving deep, and collaborating with clients to discover multi-modal practices that best meet their needs, wants, and desires. Spiritually-Sensitive and Integrative approaches to therapeutic processes are some options to expand beyond and compliment evidence-based frameworks.
Mindfulness, Yoga, & Breathwork
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Professional experiences with survivors and victims of trauma informed my decision to complete a 200-hour yoga teacher training at The Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health. I integrate yoga, mindfulness, and breathwork practices into the therapeutic process and work with each unique client to discover the application of these skills to daily life in an effort to manage stress, anxiety, and the impact of trauma and grief. Upon relocation from NYC to Vermont in 2016, I co-developed and launched a Yoga Alliance certified 200-Hour Yoga Teacher Training Program geared towards Healthcare Providers.
