Frequently Asked Questions

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During our first session, we will continue exploring if we are a good fit for each other. I will invite you to discuss what brings you to therapy and what you’re hoping to work on together. I utilize bio-psycho-social assessments, which help highlight biological, psychological, and social factors that contribute to our health and human experience. This gives us a framework during our first session (and sometimes the next few) to help us understand what's contributing to your wellness. There will be time to ask questions and discuss what the therapeutic process may look like while working together.

Since everyone has a unique human experience, what takes place in the therapeutic space is also unique. Therefore, the length of therapy isn’t always predictable until the process begins unfolding. A good way to measure time in therapy is to continually assess the progress on your goals. Checking in regularly about why you came to therapy and what progress you’re making is a good way to assess the frequency and length of our time together.

One of the best things about therapy, in my opinion, is that it is a confidential space (mostly)! Within my ethical and legal obligation to maintain your privacy and confidentiality, there are a few exceptions. This includes if you report danger to yourself or others, child abuse, elderly abuse, or dependent adult abuse. In your first session we will review these instances, and we can discuss them should you have questions or concerns.

“Spoonies” is a term used to describe persons living with chronic pain or illness who use spoons as a metaphor for their energy and ability to engage in what can often feel like a finite amount of everyday tasks and activities. Persons in this community cannot often predict how many spoons they will have on any given day, and they must make choices that dictate what spoons they are going to put towards what task or activity. 

Living with both visible and invisible illnesses can be an incredibly lonely, frustrating experience. Not knowing what each day, or each hour of the day, is going to bring can make it difficult to plan for when to do chores, how to go to work, when to have fun, and how to feel like you are the one controlling your life. Therapy is a space where I invite you to be angry, sad, disappointed, and frustrated with your chronic pain. Therapy also gives us an opportunity to explore how to be autonomous despite the uncertainty of your pain. Supporting you with following and exploring treatment plans established with your other healthcare providers, therapy is also a place we can explore your desired relationship with your pain or illnesses.

It is possible that you are seeking therapy and it has nothing to do with gender, sexuality, or your experiences of queerness. Regardless of how you identify, I center intersectionality in the therapeutic space to make room for how the tangling of your various identities inform your human experience.

Whether you are struggling with depression, anxiety, relationship issues, considering coming out to friends and family, questioning your identity, or exploring gender affirming care options, my intention is to provide a non-judgmental space for you to explore your identity, express your emotions,  be fully yourself when and how that feels comfortable for you, and feel supported and affirmed in your gender and sexuality.

Polyvagal theory helps us understand the connection between body, brain and autonomic nervous system. It provides a lens for us to understand what our nervous system is doing when it feels dysregulated, and it provides tools and interventions to more easily recenter our systems and maintain regulation. While often used as a foundation for trauma work, polyvagal theory has also proved to successfully support those living with anxiety, depression, and other experiences of dysregulation. 

Acceptance and Commitment therapy (ACT) is an approach to support you with improving your thoughts and emotions. Rather than focusing on changing your thought processes or attempting to rid you of uncomfortable thoughts and feelings, ACT works to increase cognitive flexibility in order to accept that there will, at times, be discomfort. With tools that center diffusion to increase the space between you and your uncomfortable thoughts, ACT supports us with exploring actions that more closely align with our core values in order to better navigate discomfort and the challenges of our lives.