My work with clients is based on:
Science
I am a scientist and a therapist and I approach my work with each client through a scientific lens. My approach involves in-depth assessment and continuous collaborative hypothesis testing. I involve clients in this process and together we test hypotheses about factors contributing to unhelpful patterns in their lives. I use interventions that are supported by the scientific literature and enjoy staying up to date on recent advances in psychological science.
Individualized Care
Everyone is different and I tailor my approach with each client to fit their unique needs. I love working with clients to fit scientifically supported treatment principles in their lives. I am creative in therapy and enjoy adapting the delivery and discussion of therapy concepts to meet my clients’ interests and lifestyles.
Links Between Thoughts, Feelings, and Behaviors
I emphasize the importance of connections between thoughts, emotions, and behaviors in my work from a cognitive-behavioral perspective. I work with clients to recognize and modify these connections and commonly use interventions from traditional Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Radically Open Dialectical Behavior Therapy (RO-DBT), and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
My approach is active and I think that therapy works best when clients practice therapy concepts outside of session. In session and outside of session, we’ll develop a plan to work together to interrupt unhelpful patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving.
An Understanding Your Goals
Working together with clients is important to me. When we agree that we are working towards the same goal, I can challenge clients to make change. At our initial meeting, I work with clients (and, for teens, caregivers) to gather information about specific goals. This helps me provide recommendations about how to meet these goals and helps clients understand what to expect from therapy. I also value continued feedback and frequently check in with clients to ask about their therapy experience.
Progress Monitoring
Making change is difficult and sometimes it is slow. Monitoring your progress in therapy can help us understand if it is working. I use assessments tailored to each client’s goals to measure progress. Attending to data helps us appreciate clients’ efforts and also change gears if what we’re doing isn’t working.
These tenets guide my approach to working with:
Anxiety and Depression
Consistent with scientific support for CBT-based interventions for anxiety and depression, I’ll incorporate principles of traditional CBT, ACT, DBT, RO-DBT, and behavioral activation into our work together. We will also talk about your goals and interests, with a focus on clarifying your values and improving your ability to notice and experience the current moment, instead of focusing too much on guilt or shame from the past or worries about the future.
Eating Disorders
Together we can tailor evidence-based interventions for eating disorders to fit your life. When working with kids with avoidant restrictive food intake disorder I rely on cognitive-behavioral therapy and parent coaching. My work with teens and adults with anorexia, bulimia, or binge-eating disorder also relies on principles from CBT, DBT, and integrative cognitive-affective therapy. I also provide family-based therapy for adolescents and young adults with anorexia and bulimia.
Eating disorders require support from an interdisciplinary team. I'll communicate with your primary care provider and dietitian to ensure that we are meeting your needs. If you need recommendations for providers, I’m happy to provide those too!
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors
Exposure and response prevention (ERP) is the gold standard for addressing obsessions and compulsions associated with OCD and BFRP. I work with children, caregivers, teens, and adults to develop exposure hierarchies and complete in session and out-of-session exposure exercises aimed at interrupting compulsive behavior patterns.
Problematic Exercise
Exercise has a lot of benefits, but sometimes exercise patterns interfere with health, responsibilities, and relationships and missing an exercise session can lead to intense anxiety and guilt. We can work together to shift your perspectives on exercise, increase tolerance of discomfort associated with not exercising, and reconnect with the fun and satisfying aspects of movement and a healthy lifestyle.
Athlete Mental Health Concerns
I am specifically interested in working with athletes with mental health concerns and performance anxiety. My work with athletes tailors evidence-based interventions to fit active lifestyles and the demands of sport. I combine my knowledge of sport and performance psychology with my cognitive-behavioral framework to help athletes manage eating and weight concerns, cope with injury, transition out of sport, manage perfectionism and high expectations, overcome barriers to performance, and cope with stress related to athletics and high performance.