ABOUT ME

I take an integrative approach, and I believe in seeing the whole child, rather than just the behavioR.

I am a Virginia State Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 15 years of experience working with children, teens, families, parents, and adults. I completed my undergraduate work at James Madison University with a double major of Psychology and Spanish, and a minor in Translation. I earned my Master’s Degree in Social Work at Virginia Commonwealth University. I am fluent in Spanish and have worked extensively with the Latino community for many years in and outside of the US, providing me with knowledge of bicultural issues in children and families. I spent several years practicing at the Gil Institute for Trauma Recovery and Education in Fairfax, Virginia, which allowed me to serve a diverse population of children and families with challenging behaviors.  At the Gil Institute, I created and conducted group therapy programs for adolescent girls with a history of sexual abuse. I also partnered with Katie Fallon of Bridle Paths in Leesburg, VA, to co-lead equine-assisted therapy groups for children with emotional/behavioral difficulties.  

After personally experiencing a series of tragic losses, I developed a deep interest in the spiritual world and began to connect to the intuition I was born with. After years of work on myself and experience in the field of psychotherapy, I realized that intuition is at the heart of every human, and is our connection to those we have lost, as well as our own path in life. I started to expand my practice by using my intuitive skills, as well as a variety of energy clearing techniques, in order to help children and families heal.

My areas of expertise include working with parents of challenging children, trauma, sexual/physical/emotional abuse, mood, anxiety, and impulse-control disorders, behavioral problems, grief and loss, and children of divorced parents.  I have specialized training in working with children and trauma, play therapy, and the expressive therapies.  I serve a large population, including youth in foster care and their families, adoptive families, adolescent girls with a history of sexual trauma, children with behavioral and emotional challenges, families managing life transitions, and children struggling with anxiety, depression, emotional dysregulation, attachment issues, reunification, and acculturation. I have several years experience with mindfulness techniques and am trained in Integrative Quantum Medicine level I.

The resilience and strength of the individuals and families I see continue to inspire me, and I feel rewarded on a daily basis when those who have experienced pain and hardship have the ability to trust again, and allow me to guide them in their recoveries. It is this remarkable resiliency that commits me to my profession and the individuals that I serve.

I am originally from the north shore of Massachusetts, and was born and raised a Boston sports fan and an enthusiast of anything New England. After more than 20 years residing in Virginia, there is nothing more fulfilling to me than living in this beautiful area and helping the people in my community.  I am married, with two daughters who are my heart and soul.