I am passionate about supporting people who have anxiety, OCD, and phobias. These conditions can be confusing to differentiate, and recommended treatment plans can be quite different between these conditions. This happens so often that it takes an average of 14-17 years for someone with OCD to get a correct diagnosis, and therefore, the correct treatment. I hope to be part of the change in seeing that statistic decrease. I have a strong passion for working with mothers, fathers, and parents to support them through all stages of pregnancy, postpartum, and parenting through all the ages.
In therapy sessions that focus on OCD and Anxiety-Related Difficulties, I work with clients to help teach the skills needed to manage, squash, or move on from anxious or intrusive thoughts now and long after we end our time together. You will learn how to become “your own therapist” by learning how to spot anxious or intrusive thoughts and learning EXACTLY what to do, proactively and in-the-moment, to stop them from taking over and keeping you from enjoying life. I use a variety of treatment interventions, including CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), cognitive restructuring, Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP), Inference-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (I-CBT), worry exposures, relaxation training, mindfulness, social skills training, assertiveness training, reducing worry behaviors, and problem-solving skills.
I have found that using a combination of I-CBT and ritual prevention has been the most effective. What I love about I-CBT is that it takes into account the reasons and the story we tell ourselves behind the obsessive doubts that make it so compelling in the first place. The reasoning process that is behind the obsessions is often sound logic standing alone. However, when it is applied to the current moment, it is flawed. These reasoning processes confuse imagination with reality, resulting in mistaking an imagined possibility for a real probability. By addressing how the obsessional doubt was even created to begin with, we can keep ourselves from getting sucked into/absorbed into the obsessional doubt to begin with. As a result, the anxiety and compulsions do not even occur. I enjoy working with kids, teens, young adults, adults, and families with these concerns.
For Parent Coaching and Support, I have created my own curriculum to help parents with parenting children who have ADHD and/or OCD, and interest in learning Intentional/Respectful parenting practices. I have created a series of short modules to help parents gain a better understanding of how to help their children who struggle with all things self-regulation, anxiety, and emotional regulation. Think of my curriculum as your ‘Spark Note’ best friend. I have read and heard all of the evidence-based research, books, podcasts, etc., so you don’t have to. I take strategies from some of the top ADHD, OCD, and parenting psychologists/therapists and help use them as a guide to provide you practical and realistic examples of how to actually implement them in a way that works for you. I know most families have busy, sometimes even a flavor of “chaotic,” lives. Instead of the usual “rose-colored glasses” approach taken where strategies “seem great on paper” but have us wondering, “how is that going to be possible for my family?”, I meet you where you are. Through years of experience working directly with families with a variety of different life stressors and barriers, there aren’t many barriers I haven’t seen or been able to work with. My curriculum will be helpful for any caregiver who would like guidance on how to support their child through coping with big emotions or daily struggles related to ADHD, OCD, or just being a kid.
I am licensed in Maryland and Michigan.
