my training and background

I have a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology. Research on unconscious processes, attachment theory, and the impact of trauma on the nervous system inform the way I understand the human being. My understanding of clinical practice is grounded in contemporary psychoanalytic theory and the paradigm of exposure.

Prior to private practice, I worked in an array of hospital and outpatient settings, with people facing every kind of psychiatric, psychological, and interpersonal challenge. This broad, generalist training offered me the chance to assimilate and synthesize diverse ideas of psychiatric illness, wellness, and resilience; and, simply, to contact the breadth of human experience. As a result, I work from a biopsychosocial model that seeks to consider all the many factors that contribute to individual development.

My special interests tend to have come from my own life experience. These include: work with artists and musicians and a belief in the importance of creative expression; women’s health issues, and a focus on women’s wellness; issues around sexuality, sexual identity, and sexual expression; relationship issues and couples’ work; and managing long-term illness or injury, both individually and in the context of a romantic partnership. Other areas of special interest to me include depression, anxiety, trauma, and Lyme disease and its psychological impact on the individual.

Areas in which I’ve received specialized training include: attachment theory and research; differential diagnosis; contemporary psychoanalytic theory; CBT and DBT protocols; and attitude research and theory, particularly attitudes about sexuality and sexual identity.

There’s a bit more about me here.