Building a strong, collaborative therapeutic relationship is my highest priority. My approach is very relational and client centered. Creating a safe place for you to talk about challenging issues and express painful feelings is the essence of good therapy. I provide gentle confrontation to promote growth balanced with empathy, acceptance, and caring. I truly love my work and would be honored to help you to feel better.

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. My main focus is helping people heal and understand themselves. I think we can all make a huge impact in the world when we are centered, grounded, and balanced. I hope to help you understand how you are moving in the world and give you tools that will help you achieve your goals.

I feel passionate about working with people and helping them find their own strengths and building self-esteem. I have extensive experience working with children, teens, and adults. Using sensitivity and compassion, I can help you bring resolution to a wide range of life challenges/psychological issues. I approach my work from an interactive, relationally focused standpoint, finding the most effective way to build a relationship with you and build rapport. This may mean playing a game of cards while we talk about what is going on at school or offering you a cup of tea during our session.

The alliance we build as client and therapist is a necessary and very important part of the therapeutic process. I carefully assess each individuals or couples strengths, history of relationships, sense of self, developmental status, learning styles, symptoms and readiness to change. I believe that what you find helpful to talk about in each session is most important. You and I will develop a treatment plan based upon these factors, your experience, my professional experience, research findings and what you would like to accomplish in therapy. I have a general practice and also have areas of specialty.

Relationships. Trust. Well being. Recognition of undiscovered possibilities. These core values are at the crux of my therapy practice. Whatever brings you to therapy...whether you are working on a personal issue that has been making you feel stuck, recovering from a trauma or difficult life transition, feeling inadequate or unworthy in some area of your life or feeling misunderstood in your relationship(s)...I am committed to being a skillful and compassionate practitioner who will ALWAYS keep your goals in focus. I am honored to accompany you on this journey of powerful insight, awareness, and transformation.

**NOTE: wait list available; telehealth only** Self-improvement. Relationship issues. Anxiety. Unhelpful thoughts or behaviors. These are some of the concerns that bring people, just like you, to my counseling practice. I value and work with the strengths, imperfections, gifts, genetics, history and humanity of each person or family, as these aspects inform and shape who we are. I support clients in identifying a values-based direction for positive change and explore both what motivates change and the barriers that are getting in the way. Together, we create a road map to a healthier life for you or your family.

My goal is to help individuals, couples, and families identify ways they would like to change or grow and then work with them to create more enjoyment, satisfaction, and peace in their lives. I work with individuals who are struggling with depression, anxiety, impulsive behaviors, anger, relational difficulties, grief, and dissatisfaction. In my work with couples, I aim to create a closer connection and safety in the relationship. In families, I work to decrease the conflict or problematic behaviors and then address the cause of the problem.

I hope to give you the encouragement and tools to be your best self; to inspire you to think of other's needs as well as your own, to have courage to act when you are afraid, to try again when it is appropriate, to celebrate when you succeed and, in all circumstances, to have the strength to be imperfect without the loss of self esteem.

Our counselors work with young children to adolescents on issues such as school performance, anxiety, relationships, and behavior. We also provide parent coaching to support parents efforts to help their children and family thrive. We believe the family is a system, so we try to also work with parents in various supportive capacities. This includes coaching to create a better family as well as helping divorcing parents co-parent more effectively.

My work with clients focuses on relationships. I have over 40 years of experience with couples, individuals and families. I specialize in couple therapy but work well with individuals and families.I am active as a therapist, and will be direct and clear about the patterns I see. I will come right to the point, but with care and compassion. I will meet with you in my office or by video. I work with with a range of clients, including straight, gay and lesbians. They may be married, co-habitating or single. Issues include attachment, commitment, betrayal or "heating-up" a partnership gone cold.

I have over 20 years of experience providing therapy and support to those who struggle with depression, anxiety, interpersonal and family conflicts, job related stress, behavioral issues in children, parenting concerns and the impact of trauma, illness and life transitions. I am particularly interested in supporting families in their relationships with one another and I believe in encouraging choices that are nurturing to all family members.

Feeling overwhelmed, stressed and stuck? Looking for changes in your life through therapy? I am an Art Therapist/Psychotherapist offering art therapy and counseling services to children, teens, adults and families in Bellevue. Through art therapy or talk-therapy, I can guide you toward improving the problem areas of your life and bringing back happiness, conflict free family life with your children and spouse, and good problem solving skills without anger, sadness and stress. In art therapy, the creating art process itself is relaxing, joyful and visual images itself helps us to come up with creative solutions.

I have many years experience counseling children, youth, and adults. I work with individuals, couples, families, and groups. I am also experienced in working with people from multi-cultural backgrounds. I offer a broad spectrum of approaches to help you understand yourself and make positive changes that will make your life a more fulfilling experience. I use a variety of techniques including psychodynamic, behavioral, and cognitive therapy as well as mediation and conflict resolution techniques.

My mission is to help people & families understand their emotions so that they are less likely to be reactive & more likely to be responsive in life. During my earlier career as a research psychologist at the University of Washington I focused on working with youth & adults facing issues of homelessness & substance use problems. As a result I also studied & work with treatments for suicidality, personality issues, & a wide array of stress related disorders.

In my training and career, I specialized in treating children with behavioral difficulties and adults suffering from anxiety, depression and stress. In working with children, my approach includes collaboratively working with the child and their family through their presenting issues and helping institute sustainable changes to foster individual growth in the child and relational growth in the family. This often includes psycho-education and coaching for parents in addition to individual therapy for the child. In working with adults I utilize a range of methods from existential to behavioral depending on the specific needs of the individual.

One trend I've noticed is the high percentage of truly unique and sensitive people who walk through my door. It seems some of the finest folks wind up getting lost in this world, not because they have less of an internal compass, but ironically because they have more. In a culture that prizes quick solutions and uniformity, having a voice of one's own, ideas of one's own, puts the complex and innovative individual at increased risk for mental distress. Living out loud is psychologically expensive; together we will work so you can afford to be heard.

I work with individuals, families, and those in intimate partnerships who are experiencing distress in their relationships with one another and/or their peers, work, and community. I use goal oriented and solution focused approaches to help clients manage symptoms of anxiety, depression, behavioral challenges, and problems with communication. I am using my many years working with families in crisis to help clients manage the current circumstances, including feelings of isolation, financial hardship, anxiety, panic, sadness, low motivation, managing work at home with children, and balancing autonomy with togetherness.

We are excited to announce that we have added Hailey Christensen, Clinical Intern, to our Integrative Wellness practice. As of 3/1/20, she is offering individual therapy at reduced rates (sliding scale) to better meet the needs of our clients and to support our growing practice. We are also now offering Neurofeedback services in addition to psychotherapy, counseling and wellness coaching. We invite you to explore our website to learn more about us and the benefits of psychotherapy, counseling, wellness coaching, and Neurofeedback.

I believe that personal growth is a lifelong endeavor. People can grow and change if they are willing to invest the time, given the tools, and if they are provided with support. As your therapist, I will help you achieve self-awareness, satisfaction, and happiness. I want you to become the best version of yourself and for you to be in satisfying relationships. I possess experience working with individuals of all orientations and genders and with couples on various issues ranging from the simple to the complex.