About Me
I am a Washington State Licensed Associate Mental Health Counselor (License# MC60133794). I earned a Masters degree in Mental Health Counseling in 2006 from the Center of Psychological Studies at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, FL. My undergraduate work was also in Psychology at Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA. I also had the opportunity to work within the family court and drug courts system in Miami-Dade County, FL working with victims and perpetrators of domestic violence as well as clients with mental health, substance abuse and addiction disorders. Since graduating, I have worked with individuals, couples and groups in a community mental health setting. I’ve worked with clients through the therapeutic process that have presented with a variety of mental health and social issues. Additionally, I have extensive experience working with individuals from a variety of social, cultural and religious backgrounds.
Therapeutic Techniques and Methodology
Our initial contact is a time to discuss your concerns, begin to obtain historical information, and clarify issues appropriate for focused psychotherapy. This initial process generally takes three to four sessions. This period is both evaluative and therapeutic. I will actively use my training and experience to help you meet your goals. Effective therapy will be a direct result of mutual efforts, honesty, and a spirit of collaboration.
As with any client, an assessment is made of each client’s strengths and development; a treatment plan is composed based on the needs presented by the client. However it is important that counseling is a collaborative effort of client and therapist to work towards healthy goals for treatment.
My theoretical approach stems from Cognitive-Behavioral therapy, which aims to solve problems concerning dysfunctional emotions, behaviors and cognitions through a goal-oriented, systematic procedure; Person-Centered therapy, which uses the therapeutic relationship as its main point of influence; and Solution-Focused therapy, which focuses on what clients want to achieve through therapy rather than on the problem(s) that made them to seek help. The approach does not focus on the past, but instead, focuses on the present and future.Furthermore, each client's treatment is very specific and tailored to each individual, therefore other methods of treatment may be used depending on the need of the client. If further disclosure of specific treatment is necessary, it will be explained at the time of treatment.
