I have had the honor of supporting others in healing and growth for over 10 years. As a relational therapist, I'm passionate about working with teens, individuals, couples, and families. I specialize in supporting those who have been touched by adoption, grief, loss, trauma, and hurt from religion, as well as people who desire increased connection, to explore personal identity, and to find an authentic belief system or spirituality. I create an open and inviting space for others to engage in deep introspective reflection that helps foster creativity, authenticity, and expansion.

This is not how it’s supposed to be. Tuning out the pain works some days. Others, it is relentless, overwhelming. It can hurt to blink. Thank goodness there’s work, the kids, the dog... They give a reason to get out of bed and avoid the guilt of not. Most days it feels like no one understands. Being with others should be simple! Until the yuck bubbles and it all turns sour. Snap! Crash! Now I'm irritable & sad too. At least social distancing makes isolating acceptable. It’s all so exhausting. Like having the gas pedal and the brake pressed at the same time. ‘Coping’ and ‘managing’ are a joke. Is relief too much to ask?!

Are you interested in how to use the connections between your mind, brain and body to improve your health, enrich your relationships, and increase your overall life? Working with these connections has been the focus of my 30 years of practice as a psychologist. Since every client's presenting concern in some way or another impacts upon their brain, their mind and their body - whether that involves depression, anxiety, pain, sleep, relationship challenges, or digestive concerns - my orientation to therapy is well positioned to help people get better now and to be better positioned to stay healthier in the future.

Emotional health doesn’t happen by chance. It is a commitment to a better future which you deserve. During your initial visit, we will begin our therapeutic relationship and discuss your short-and long-term goals for therapy. Whether you are interested in a few sessions to deal with current life stressors or seeking long-term therapy to overcome past trauma, we will create a treatment plan that will help you live a more fulfilling life. I take a collaborative approach where you determine your needs and we work together to address the issues that brought you to therapy while identifying strategies to assist in the healing process.

EQUINE ASSISTED THERAPY AND EQUINE CONNECTED EMDR. Are you ready to put your trauma behind and look forward to living your best life? When it comes to trauma, the body keeps the score. Memories are state driven, based on what was going on for the individual at the time of the occurrence. Deep relaxation and feelings of connectedness during processing, forge new neural pathways, helping the client heal. Future templating and visualization can remove obstacles to success and fears can be replaced by confidence. Working with horses is an experiential approach to therapy that integrates body, mind and spirit and promotes healing.

Christina enjoys working with individuals, couples and families helping support them in making changes they want to make. She has her B.A. in Sociology and Diversity Studies from SCSU and her M.S. in MHC from Walden University. She is in pursuit of her Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor credential. Christina has 30 years of experience providing adults, adolescents, children, and families with services that are person-centered, strength-based and therapeutic. She has worked in foster care and long-term residential, community based programs, as well as crisis and substance abuse/recovery treatment, vocational and education areas

Are you feeling stuck? Overwhelmed? Perhaps in the grips of anxiety, depression, a troubled relationship, grief, or other issues that threaten your ability to feel your best? As a skilled integrative therapist, I first focus on getting to know you and listening carefully for the desired changes. You and I will then create a plan that is designed to achieve rapid and lasting results. As we are all individuals, I will propose a plan that honors your unique issues and at the same time, be effective, ethical, and gentle.

My goal is to provide empathetic, creative problem-solving, and dynamic counsel to those who find themselves both stressed and depressed by the circumstances of the life they are living -- both alone and in relationship with others. This is not about "mental illness" or behavioral change alone. This is about providing a caring, non-judgmental and trained ear to those in need of someone to hear them, offer a new perspective of looking at things and creating new proactive approaches to life's problems. This is for those who may be apprehensive about therapy, but need to converse with a non-judgmental, objective listener.

Therapy is hard work. Going to therapy for the first time or the hundredth time can be really scary. Finding a therapist who fits with your needs and desires is crucial to a healthy and successful therapeutic experience. As a therapist, I support clients in working on goals that YOU design. Through an integrative and holistic approach, my style is to guide the client in working through life challenges, mood concerns, medical conditions, relationships, severe mental illness, and other life issues.

IN PERSON OR TELETHERAPY APPOINTMENTS AVAILABLE The times are changing and we all need more resiliency to get through the current challenges. Stressors are at an all-time high level, leaving many people unprepared for the situations they are experiencing. Under stress, our behavior can fall back to our default settings that were shaped in our early childhood. These patterns may not serve us or our families well. Learning new skills can give us the tools to develop appropriate responses and forge new neuropathways that will enhance the way we connect with the people close to us. Happiness comes from secure connected relationships