I’m an experienced Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who works with adults navigating complicated relationships, anxiety, family dynamics, life transitions, and the general messiness of being human. I particularly enjoy helping people untangle longstanding patterns, make sense of difficult relationships, and figure out what they actually want from their lives.

I’m a big believer in acceptance, although I don’t mean throwing up your hands and deciding that nothing can change. Quite the opposite. Acceptance means being willing to see things as they really are, even when we’d much prefer they were different. Once we stop arguing with reality (an exhausting and generally unsuccessful undertaking), we can begin to make thoughtful choices about what comes next.

My therapeutic style is warm, curious, collaborative, and direct. I draw from Internal Family Systems (IFS), attachment theory, family systems, and Gottman Method Level 1 training. I’m interested in understanding why we do the things we do, particularly when those things aren’t working terribly well for us anymore. I believe insight is valuable, but I also believe it should lead somewhere. And I think a little humor can be enormously helpful. Sometimes the ability to laugh at ourselves is a sign that we’re finally seeing things a little more clearly.

I’ve worked with children in schools, young adults in college counseling programs, and adults of all ages in private practice. Before becoming a therapist, I was a musician and music teacher. I’ve had a few different professional lives, and I think that’s given me a healthy appreciation for the fact that people rarely follow a straight path.

I grew up in Canada, lived and worked in New York, taught English in Japan, and eventually settled in Marin County, where I’ve raised my two children. I’m happy to claim some of the stereotypically Canadian qualities—fair-mindedness, kindness, and a certain fondness for politeness—although I’m also quite comfortable asking difficult questions.

After years of working with people, I’ve become increasingly convinced that there is no single formula for a good life. My job isn’t to tell you how to live yours. It’s to help you understand yourself, recognize your choices, and feel more capable of making the ones that are right for you.