Psychotherapy

In your first session we’ll talk about your goals & intentions for therapy & what modalities & therapy approaches appeal to you.

Any of the following can be combined & curated to your needs.

buddha statue next to clear pond with goldfish

CONTEMPLATIVE PSYCHOTHERAPY

My style of Psychotherapy emphasizes the mind-body relationship, integrating mindfulness practice & working to interrupt problematic patterns in the mind, body & emotions. We’ll work with how your mind might be struggling with anxiety/panic, boundaries & limiting beliefs. Awareness in the present moment provides the essential framework for curiosity & gentleness in the process of change.

SOMATIC PSYCHOTHERAPY

In sessions I direct you, experientially, in tracking body sensation, the movement of emotion, thoughts, breath & posture to attune to & integrate what is needing attention. At the same time, there is the potential to release blockages & an opportunity to reset the nervous system.

Assignments between sessions further integrate practices into your daily lifestyle.

PSYCHOTHERAPY INTENSIVES

I offer Somatic Psychotherapy Intensives that focus on the development of embodiment. These sessions are curated to your needs & can include somatic practices, developmental movement & learning how to pace energy for sensitive nervous systems & much more…

Intensives are informed by training & experience in Body-Mind Centering, Developmental Somatic Psychotherapy & Sensorimotor Psychotherapy.

more information here.

candles in gold bowls, lite

GRIEF COUNSELING

I began my career in end-of-life care & have over a decade of experience in hospice, dementia care & grief counseling. I strive to help people understand that grief is a natural human process & is not simply sadness, but includes an array of emotions as well as body responses.

Loss is inevitable, but the extent to which you suffer with loss is not pre-determined. Grief left unattended can devolve into despair & endless sorrow.

PARTS INTEGRATION

I first learned “parts work” through mentorship with a Shamanic Journey-work teacher who taught me Soul Parts Retrieval & since have added & adapted Internal Family Systems & Somatic Psychotherapy to create a primary focus on parts-mapping & body-mapping.

Parts-mapping helps cultivate self-compassion as well as disengaging denial of difficult emotions. Please note: I do not offer “formal” IFS work as it does not suit my approach.

hands in terra cotta colored sand

SANDTRAY FOR ADULTS

I am trained in child-directed play therapy & although I no longer see children in my practice, it’s a joy to offer Sandtray to adult clients.

Sandtray is an Expressive Arts Therapy that is wonderful for connecting with the unconscious, parts & body-mapping, working with developmental movement & tracking conflicting emotions. It’s also a nice compliment to listening therapy.

orange tabby cat tucked into bed

INSOMNIA INTERVENTIONS

For those who are suffering with sleep challenges, I offer a range of assessment & modalities, including: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia for those who have built up years of negative thought associations with bedtime & Somatic relaxation techniques for “tired & wired” nerves. Psych-education related to neurodivergent sleep differences is integrated with techniques as we define your mix of sleep challenges & determine what else might be needed…when warm milk is just not cutting it!

the foundations of my approach

  • “Nothing in the world is as soft & yielding as water. Yet for dissolving the hard & inflexible, nothing can surpass it. The soft overcomes the hard; the gentle overcomes the rigid.”

    — Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching

  • Loving Kindness

    Sometimes we are not very skilled at being gentle & kind to ourselves. Often the opposite is the norm, which results in a barrage of self-aggressive thoughts riddled with "shoulds."

    It's impossible to experience joy from this place of self-judgement. We can't fake it. Loving ourselves is not fluffy, unimportant stuff. It is the most essential ingredient to living a life of purpose & connection.

  • Mindfulness & Embodiment

    Mindfulness has become a commonly used term that in some ways has become watered-down due to overly broad use. Mindfulness is our effort to turn our attention & awareness to the present moment in an intentional way.

    This includes mindfulness of what our thoughts & mind are doing, as well as mindfulness of body, breath, movement & posture.

    Combining mindfulness of body & mind can create what we call an "embodied" way of being…feeling “whole.”

  • Curiosity

    Curiosity creates the space for exploration & disarms judgement & assumptions. As such, it is very effective for exploring fear & problematic beliefs.

    Curiosity is often a gateway to playfulness, light-heartedness & creative expression, which is beneficial in therapy & life.

  • Emotional Intelligence

    If emotional intelligence is not modeled for us as we develop & grow we simply do not learn how to clearly name how we feel.

    We may assume that some emotions are unacceptable to others around us & begin to suppress our feelings.

    Emotional intelligence begins with knowing how to identify feelings & to learn to attune to yourself.

  • Non-Pathologizing Approach

    Mental Health diagnosis has many flaws. Diagnostics can be helpful & sometimes harmful. While some folks benefit from a diagnosis, others do not or are mis-diagnosed.

    Whatever your situation, it’s important to me that I do not pathologize you, but rather help to offer effective guidance & frameworks to support psychological, emotional & relational well-being. You are not “broken.”

  • Neurodivergent-Affirming

    Neurodivergent-affirming therapy acknowledges the challenges neurodivergent people experience. Strategies are customized to meet an individual’s unique circumstances, respecting inherent neurodivergent attributes.

    We also use the terms & language that resonate for you. Come as your are…self-diagnosed or otherwise.

    This is not about making neurodivergent individuals conform to neurotypical standards. That practice has caused a lot of harm, historically & is inappropriate in neurodivergent-affirming psychotherapy.

getting started with psychotherapy…

Follow the link & schedule your 50 minute intro session. I offer a reduced rate of $100 for the first session, so we can get a feel for if working together is a good fit. If you cannot find a time that works for you, message me via my contact page.

A first session is an opportunity to see if you like the way I work & we’ll talk about your needs & how to proceed from there.

You can indicate if you would like to meet online or in-person in Columbia, MO.