About me and therapy with me … A friend once described herself as “old as dirt” and it stuck in my memory as a humorous way of listing background references. I don’t claim to have wisdom but I do believe that life experience is a good teacher.

I am a credentialed public school teacher with Life Credential valid to serve kindergarten to adults. I am a licensed Marriage, Family and Child Counselor in California and Oregon. I taught graduate and undergraduate courses in Counseling, Psychology and Human Services for five years in California. I provided group and individual therapy for victims at the work place under worker’s compensation. I have been in private practice since 2000. I moved to Eugene in Oct. 2013.

As I reach out to you who are seeking greater personal stability or growth, I offer not only my studies, but my integrated life experiences. I have gathered and want to give to you. Not that I have answers, but I am strong and I will walk strongly with you as we explore your path. I will support you when the path is rocky and I will caringly push you when you feel like stopping. If you feel lost, I will guide you to discovering your own way. Then you will celebrate because YOU did it!

Emotional traumas are not “just in your head”. You can’t just “get over it” until the issues are understood, mourned, confronted, chewed up and spit out.

Emotions are powerful and have a life of their own separate from the mind. Emotions release  hormones which affect the body. I am here to offer you a symbolic shoulder to cry on, intelligent reflection of the issues, and guided processing to assist your mind in getting back in the driver’s seat while still respecting the emotional self.

We might reframe how you see the situation, use solutions-focused methods, use the biofeedback computers to train the brain, learn communication skills, do Spiritual connection work, cry and talk, talk, talk it out. Let’s get a better Life! Learn about brain function and positive thinking, use imagery and visualization, notice patterns and symbolic events and become aware of the various aspects of the Self. We have a nurturing parent inside, a critical parent, a child, an adult, and other aspects with which to dialogue. Let’s get someone constructive in charge and enjoy life to the fullest!

As a healer and minister I have treated many health conditions and terminal illnesses with Hands-on-Energy-Balancing Healing. I worked in hospitals, healing centers and presided over many marriages and funerals. I provided CEUs to nurses and taught in two training centers for the Healing Arts. Energy exists; use it well!

I treat problems with children through you, their adult. It takes two to tango. I will assist you in changing the games the two of you are engaged in. I have been working with children for 45 years through infant-toddler centers, preschools, day cares, university and public schools.

As a foster care social worker, I worked with children in foster homes and provided trainings to foster parents for 14 years. As a Marriage and Family Therapist since 1997, I have experience providing psychotherapy to individuals, families and children. I was approved by L.A. Dept. of Probation and provided therapy to teens on probation. I was a Medi-Cal provider treating children with serioius and terminal medical conditions for California Children’s Services.

For patients receiving treatment with medications for conditions such as anxiety disorders, Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder and OCD, I provide the supportive therapy to work on resolving the problems which are being treated. If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with a serious disorder or if you think that you or a loved one may need help for a serious condition, I will work with your psychiatrist to provide mental health services to compliment the medical services.

I provide psychotherapy in English or Spanish.

As a LMFT since 1997, I have also provided therapy to children who have been victims of crimes and to adults who have been victimized. I was deemed an “expert witness” in the Dependency Court of Los Angeles because of my experience treating victims of crime. If you or someone you know are a victim of a crime, the State of Oregon may pay for your therapy. I will offer you gentle but firm help to assist you in healing from the multi-faceted traumas.

I come from a background of teaching people from birth to adult, having received a MA in Human Development with a specialization in parent-community work, teaching credential, and second MA in Marriage, Family and Child Counseling from Pacific Oaks College.

In California, in addition to monthly continuing education courses to professionals at Gerry Grossman Seminars, I was on-ground faculty at the University of Phoenix in the Counseling, Human Services and Psychology programs.

Licensed since 1997, my various clinical settings have included county clinics, foster care, workers compensation office, and mental health insurance panels. I volunteered as the Clinical Director, L.A. Chapter, A Home Within and as a Director on the Board of Directors, Ca. Division of AAMFT.

I use a Humanistic therapeutic style in my private practice in Eugene and am bilingual in Spanish. In my leisure I time enjoy hiking, biking, and other outdoor activities.

My purpose in life is to enjoy and teach others to enjoy!