I've lived with treatment-resistant depression for years. I've navigated shame, identity, and faith after experiencing religiously motivated conversion therapy as a teenager. That experience shaped my understanding of shame, coercion, faith, and survival in ways that no textbook ever could. It also profoundly shaped my commitment to safety, consent, and curiosity in therapy. I've recovered from a traumatic brain injury that upended my cognition and worsened my mood.

Those experiences taught me that healing isn't about forcing yourself to be different. It's about creating enough safety to be curious about what's inside and the willings to meet every part of yourself with compassion instead of judgment. Internal Family Systems became the turning point for me, and it's now at the center of how I work with others.

I am also a PhD student studying the harms of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Change Efforts, often referred to as conversion therapy. And in addition to my clinical work, I teach, speak nationally, and remain actively involved in education and crisis response. I volunteered as a counselor for the Trevor Project’s 988 LGBTQ+ crisis line and currently work with critical incident response teams supporting first responders and communities after traumatic events. 

Outside of the office, I am someone who loves learning, building, and fixing things. I have a deep appreciation for history and craft, especially in photography. I restore and use vintage film cameras, work with traditional photographic processes, and spend time outdoors photographing landscapes. Friends will tell you that if something is broken, I will probably try to fix it rather than replace it. That instinct carries into my clinical work as well. I am not afraid to dig in, try different approaches, and keep going when something matters.