Thank you for visiting my website!

A little about myself:

I was born in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  As one of five siblings, I am no stranger to the joys and challenges that larger family dynamics present.  My father was in the car business and my mother was a successful published author.  My childhood was rich in literature, theater, and fine art.  The predominant family culture was psychological.  You weren’t truly a family member until you had your own therapist – and that happened before you reached double digits!  A game my mother played with me in elementary school was to give me short vignettes and then ask me to explain the psychological dynamics that were at play.  She would then teach me the relevant psychological terms.  (I do imagine that I was among a select group of fourth graders who could give you the definition of Reaction Formation.)  Needless to say, being a therapist is deeply rooted in my cellular structure, and psychological process has been a lifelong fascination.  I am forever interested in the vagaries of human nature, and I find that our similarities are as striking as our differences.  We are each “one-of-a-kind.”  Being a part of facilitating someone in becoming more authentically themselves is an honor and a privilege.

My childhood passions were sports and art.  I was fortunate enough to grow up in a public school system that was before its time; both girls’ and boys’ sports teams were equally supported.  I played competitive team sports starting in first grade: field hockey, swimming, softball, and lacrosse by high school.  In truth, I played whatever was offered – any excuse to run, jump, and learn physical skills was enough reason to join.  To this day, I am a downhill skier and have become an avid pickleball player.  Some might say my love of the game borders on obsession!

In the late 70s, I went back to school to obtain a Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology, yet my love of teaching remained strong.  As an adjunct professor, I taught graduate school in a psychology program for thirteen years.  Additionally, I founded and directed a school called Creative Explorations, which combined my love of art and psychology.  I designed and implemented a psychologically-based process in which the students explored their identity and life issues through the making of art.

I was licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist in 1986, and have been serving individuals, couples, families, and children ever since.  I began my EMDR (Eye-Movement Desensitization Reprocessing) training in 1993 and from the very start was deeply moved by how powerfully transformative it was.  Within two years, I became a facilitator in EMDR trainings and soon after became an EMDRIA-certified International Therapist and Consultant.  I have integrated EMDR protocols which include Moving Through Creative Blocks, Transforming Process Addictions (food, sex, work, etc), and Personal Empowerment.

After decades of professional work with students and clients alike and consistently running into the limitations of current trauma modalities, I developed an innovative protocol called Super Resourcing: An EMDR Strategy for Healing Attachment Trauma. Formally introduced in 2017, Super Resourcing (SR) offers a new way of thinking about and healing attachment trauma that is both creative and grounded in the current research on the neurobiology of trauma and attachment issues repair.  One of the foundational benefits of SR is that it presents a paradigm shift; it focuses on developing the neurological integration of positive resources for the part of the person who experienced the trauma, rather than on the trauma itself.  This results in a lowering of distress and facilitates an enhanced present-time experience of self. It maximizes the development of new and more positive neural networks. By frequently taking the trauma out of trauma processing, SR challenges the assumption that reprocessing traumatic memories is necessary for their resolution.  So as to further share my developments with the psychological community, I launched the Super Resourcing Institute in 2024.

In May 2018, I completed an intensive training program with the Life Balance Institute and became a certified Change & Transition Strategist in the Moffitt Method.  Change is a fundamental aspect of life.  Working individually and in workshops, I find great pleasure in assisting people as they navigate transitions in their lives.  To this end, I work in a results-based, time-efficient manner that is consistent with much of the new brain research on the neurobiology of change.  For more about this work, and to find information about my current workshops, please visit my Navigating Change & Transition page.

Regardless of which door a prospective client or student comes through, be it psychology, change & transition, Nine Bodies, or mentorship, I integrate all of my methodologies and principles and provide an integrative experience.  I have acquired a large and varied toolbox, and how we work together becomes a novel, creative, and inherently personalized adventure.  I am more interested in responding fully to the moment than relying solely on an allegiance to a particular approach for healing and personal growth.  I deeply enjoy the exploration of the myriad ways that my clients and students can achieve their own definition of well-being through our collaboration.

As an artist, my approach to life as well as my work is essentially creative.  I have great trust in the indomitability of the human spirit and believe that we are all capable of transforming old behavioral patterns, self-limiting beliefs, and feelings as we move toward living our lives more authentically.

Thank you for visiting my website!

A little about myself:

I was born in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  As one of five siblings, I am no stranger to the joys and challenges that larger family dynamics present.  My father was in the car business and my mother was a successful published author.  My childhood was rich in literature, theater, and fine art.  The predominant family culture was psychological.  You weren’t truly a family member until you had your own therapist – and that happened before you reached double digits!  A game my mother played with me in elementary school was to give me short vignettes and then ask me to explain the psychological dynamics that were at play.  She would then teach me the relevant psychological terms.  (I do imagine that I was among a select group of fourth graders who could give you the definition of Reaction Formation.)  Needless to say, being a therapist is deeply rooted in my cellular structure, and psychological process has been a lifelong fascination.  I am forever interested in the vagaries of human nature, and I find that our similarities are as striking as our differences.  We are each “one-of-a-kind.”  Being a part of facilitating someone in becoming more authentically themselves is an honor and a privilege.

My childhood passions were sports and art.  I was fortunate enough to grow up in a public school system that was before its time; both girls and boys sport teams were equally supported.  I played competitive team sports starting in first grade: field hockey, swimming, softball, and lacrosse by high school.  In truth, I played whatever was offered – any excuse to run, jump, and learn physical skills was enough reason to join.  To this day, I am a downhill skier and have become an avid pickleball player.  Some might say my love of the game borders on obsession!

I think of painting as my first language.  I remember vividly my first conscious art moment when I was four years old, and it has since been a lifelong passion.  I am accomplished in a variety of mediums from welding to water colors, though the medium is less important to me than the supreme pleasure of making form, moving color, and bringing dimension to experience.  My art is featured throughout this website.

As for my professional life, nearly all of my early jobs were people-related – from childhood camp counselor to working in the back lock-down patient ward of a mental institution as a teenager.  (That was a one-of-a-kind experience, as you cain imagine!)  My first career was as a Special Education teacher.  I worked with the severely emotionally disturbed – some years with autistic adolescents, and then on the other end of the spectrum with those suffering from schizophrenia and a variety of behavioral issues.  My favorite job in that chapter was running a day school program and having the opportunity to design and implement psycho-educational programs.

In the late 70’s, I went back to school to obtain a Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology, yet my love of teaching remained strong.  As an adjunct professor, I taught graduate school in a psychology program for thirteen years.  Additionally, I founded and directed a school called Creative Explorations, which combined my love of art and psychology.  I designed and implemented a psychologically-based process in which the students explored their identity and life issues through the making of art.

I was licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist in 1986, and have been serving individuals, couples, families, and children ever since.  I began my EMDR (Eye-Movement Desensitization Reprocessing) training in 1993 and from the very start was deeply moved by how powerfully transformative it was.  Within two years, I became a facilitator in EMDR trainings and soon after became an EMDRIA-certified International Therapist and Consultant.  I have integrated EMDR protocols which include Moving Through Creative Blocks, Transforming Process Addictions (food, sex, work, etc), and Personal Empowerment.

After decades of professional work with students and clients alike and consistently running into the limitations of current trauma modalities, I developed an innovative protocol called Super Resourcing: An EMDR Strategy for Healing Attachment Trauma. Formally introduced in 2017, Super Resourcing (SR) offers a new way of thinking about and healing attachment trauma that is both creative and grounded in the current research on the neurobiology trauma and attachment issues repair.  One of the foundational benefits of SR is that it presents a paradigm shift; it focuses on developing the neurological integration of positive resources for the part of the person who experienced the trauma, rather than on the trauma itself.  This results in a lowering of distress and facilitates an enhanced present-time experience of self. It maximizes the development of new and more positive neural networks. By frequently taking the trauma out of trauma processing, SR challenges the assumption that reprocessing traumatic memories is necessary for their resolution.  So as to further share my developments with the psychological community, I created an introductory home study self-paced webinar for practitioners seeking to implement the protocol in their own practices.

In May of 2018, I completed an intensive training program with the Life Balance Institute and became a certified Change & Transition Strategist in the Moffitt Method.  Change is a fundamental aspect of life.  Working individually and in workshops, I find great pleasure in assisting people as they navigate transitions in their lives.  To this end, I work in a results-based, time-efficient manner that is consistent with much of the new brain research on the neurobiology of change.  For more about this work, and to find information about my current workshops, please visit my Navigating Change & Transition page.

In 2008, I attended a one-day workshop presented by Phillip Moffitt, called Awakening Through the Nine Bodies.  From the very start, this work captured my mind, heart, and soul, and consequently, I completed a facilitator training program.  It has become a primary lens through which I perceive and live my life.  Through additional study, I have found that these teachings have enormous psychological relevance for facilitating emotional balancing and wellbeing in everyday life.  To this end, I have developed a body of crossover material, which I have presented in a class called “Exploring the Emotional Body,” which is an integration of these teachings with psychological principles.  This integrative offering not only presents valuable tools for clients, but it is also a helpful lens through which the practitioner can view their own experiences.  For information about the class and to be notified when it is being offered, please contact me.

Regardless of which door a prospective client or student comes through, be it psychology, change & transition, Nine Bodies, or mentorship, I integrate all of my methodologies and principles and provide an integrative experience.  I have acquired a large and varied toolbox, and how we work together becomes a novel, creative, and inherently personalized adventure.  I am more interested in responding fully to the moment than relying solely on an allegiance to a particular approach for healing and personal growth.  I deeply enjoy the exploration of the myriad ways that my clients and students can achieve their own definition of well-being through our collaboration.

As an artist, my approach to life as well as my work is essentially creative.  I have great trust in the indomitability of the human spirit and believe that we are all capable of transforming old behavioral patterns, self-limiting beliefs, and feelings as we move toward living our lives more authentically.