Office Locations
3000 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 400A
Washington, DC 20008-2527

Handicap access: Partial. One must enter from North entrance (I am at South entrance) or the back door in middle of building. There are elevators. Restroom is too narrow for full wheelchair access.

Public Transportation/Parking:

Metrorail: Red line, .5 mile walk from either Cleveland Park or Woodley Park stops

Metrobus: Connecticut Avenue buses

On-street parking (However, do not park on Connecticut Ave. during rush hour restricted times - 7:00–9:30 a.m. and 4:00–6:30 p.m.)

Professional Background
Licenses:
Licensed Psychologist; DC

Education:
Howard University, Ph.D., Counseling Psychology
Catholic University of America, M.A., Counseling
Rhodes College, B.A. Art

Pre-doctoral internship: Alexandria Mental Health Center, Alexandria, VA
Pre-doctoral externship: Whitman-Walker Clinic, Washington, DC

Dissertation: The Relationship of Internalized Heterosexism and Outness About a Lesbian Sexual Orientation to Psychological Adjustment

Professional Associations

American Psychological Association
Eye Movement Desensitization & Reprocessing International Association
International Society for the Study of Subtle Energies and Energy Medicine
Professional Division of The Monroe Institute
Institute of Noetic Sciences

Languages
English only

Services
IIndividual, couples, and group psychotherapy

Clinical consultation and supervision

Training health care professionals in providing culturally-competent services to LGBT clients and patients.

With over 25 years of training experience, workshops and trainings can be tailored to specific organizational or group needs.

Specialties
Post-traumatic and acute stress conditions
Dissociative disorders
Healing abuse, neglect, loss
Relationship and family issues
Coming out and sexual identity
Dealing with chronic mental illness
Serious physical illness (cancer, HIV/AIDS, etc.)
Bereavement and loss
Mood (depression, bipolar) disorders
Anxiety disorders
Life transitions
Personal growth and spirituality
Spiritual Emergence and Transpersonal experiences

Counseling Approach

I am a licensed psychologist with an office that looks out over the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. I love my work as a psychotherapist and am continually amazed and excited to watch the resiliency of the human spirit and the healing and growth that can occur from the work that clients and I do together.

A primary requirement for successful psychotherapy is a solid therapeutic relationship. Qualities such as safety, confidentiality, compassion, acceptance, understanding, patience, respect, validation, support, and hope are key. I know that I need to earn your trust and that our work together needs to be grounded in who you are, as well as with a clear focus on your goals.

I am interactive in therapy sessions and have been described by clients as one who is "not afraid to roll up her sleeves and get right in there." I incorporate an appreciation of the cultural and environmental context into therapy, and we frequently address the influence of everyday experiences of heterosexism, racism, sexism, and other forms of oppression on one's well-being and functioning. We explore the psychodynamics of “what’s really going on” under the surface and take a respectful and compassionate look at what may be understandable and outdated coping strategies. I think of good therapy as a collaborative effort: the creativity and contributions of both of us are essential!

I frequently employ both experimental and empirically validated methods that have been developed from the studies of the neurobiology of attachment, trauma, consciousness and mindfulness, as well as complementary traditions of energy medicine and mind-body healing. I find that these more experiential therapies often facilitate change and healing at a “gut” level in ways that "traditional talk therapy” has failed to even touch:

* Somatic Experiencing (SE) addresses the psychobiology of stress and trauma. Traumatic stress symptoms are understood as expressions of incomplete or fixated lower brain functions of fight, flight, or freeze. SE helps the person complete these responses, thus restoring the body’s inherent ability to self-regulate, and increasing the ability to integrate a wider spectrum of human experience.

* Developmental Needs Meeting Strategy (DNMS) is an ego state therapy based on the assumption that the degree to which developmental needs were not adequately met is the degree to which a client is stuck in childhood. The DNMS starts by guiding clients to establish three internal Resources: a Nurturing Adult Self, a Protective Adult Self, and a Spiritual Core Self – which together form a Healing Circle. Together these Resources help wounded child ego states get unstuck from the past, by meeting their unmet developmental needs.

* Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
EMDR is a form of therapy that uses eye movements or other forms of rhythmic stimulation while the client focuses on traumatic material in such a way that seems to "unlock" the nervous system and help the brain reprocess the trauma more rapidly and effectively. In recent studies, 84-90% of people who had suffered single-incident traumas recovered from posttraumatic stress after only 3 EMDR sessions.

* I find that experimental energy psychology methods, such as the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), Thought-Field Therapy (TFT) or Tapas Acupressure Technique (TAT) , which use intentional thinking and acupressure points from Chinese medicine, often provide clients with useful techniques for handling difficulties, such as stress and anxiety, between sessions.

* Techniques drawn from stress management, mindfulness practices, and guided imagery.

* I also look for readings, CDs, biofeedback “games,” and other forms of "homework" that can allow clients to further their understanding of themselves and their relationships and develop new skills outside of sessions. I believe that change is produced more quickly and deeply when the work of therapy extends beyond the "50-minute hour."

In addition, I have trained in clinical hypnosis through the American Society for Clinical Hypnosis (www.asch.net) and in post-traumatic stress and dissociative disorders through the Eastern Regional Conferences on Abuse and Multiple Personality. In addition, I trained under Dr. Christine Courtois, a psychologist and author internationally recognized for her expertise in post-traumatic conditions and dissociation.

One of the joys of this work is that I get to continually study new methods for facilitating deep and lasting change. I am always eager to share these with clients, that they may feel empowered to better meet the inevitable challenges that life presents.

Payment Policies and Insurance Accepted
Check mental health coverage and any necessary pre-authorization procedures with your insurance provider. Although I am not on managed care panels, most PPOs will provide some reimbursement for services by out-of-network providers. I can complete the necessary forms for you to receive reimbursement; however, I ask that you take responsibility for obtaining any required pre-authorizations and finding out if and when I may have to complete outpatient treatment reports for you to receive reimbursement.

I am an assigned provider for Medicare and provide filing for Medicare/Medigap policies.

Other Professional & Volunteer Activities
I find that teaching and training health care professionals provides a nice balance to my work as a psychotherapist. For several years, I was an adjunct faculty member at Marymount University, where I taught graduate level courses in crisis intervention. For over 25 years, I have trained in a wide variety of areas, including communication skills, leadership development, management, career development, personal growth, relationship skills, and issues pertinent to living in a heterosexist culture. I was a national trainer for the Mautner Project’s Removing the Barriers program, training health care professionals to provide culturally competent care to women who partner with women. I frequently provide training and consultation in working with LGBT clients to mental health professionals in agencies around the greater Washington metropolitan area and have trained staff at Whitman-Walker Clinic on a variety of clinical topics.

I continue to value volunteer service to our community. I recently finished a four-year term on the Board of Directors and remain a volunteer therapist for Whitman-Walker Clinic. I served on the Board of the Lesbian Health and Wellness Network and have volunteered in various capacities for the Mautner Project for Lesbians with Cancer, including serving as its first client services coordinator. As a former counseling psychologist at the U.S. Government Accountability Office, I was among the founding members of the federal Gay, Lesbian, or Bi Employees (GLOBE).

Availability
Monday–Thursday, days. Evening appointments rarely become available.