Psychologist in Winter Park and Orlando

You may be feeling overwhelmed, anxious, lonely, worrying all the time or fear you may not ever be good enough. Maybe you're constantly overthinking and second guessing yourself, wondering how everyone else keeps it together. It's taken a toll on you and your relationships.

Sometimes it feels like you have a permanent seat on the Struggle Bus.

Perhaps, most of the time you can hold it together, keep a brave face. Yet, it feels like one wrong move and everything will start to unravel. You just want to feel secure and confident, and truly understand what is means to Live My Best Life! *without the sarcasm.

Here's why I became a therapist and want to make a difference:

  • I want people to know you can feel better and enjoy your life.
  • You don’t have to wear your exhaustion like a badge of honor.
  • I want people to be able to share when things aren’t going well, and be helped not judged.
  • Making big decisions is difficult, and you need a space without another person’s agenda.
  • Feeling alone or lost hurts and I want to stand by you and guide you out of it.
  • I know you deserve to feel better and be better.

I know through my years of experience and extensive training, that when you start to deal with all this noise in your mind through therapy, you become more confident, strong, and best badass version of yourself! 

All the pieces start to fall in place. The worries start to lessen their grip, the joy starts to flood back in, and you start to feel whole again.

You finally love yourself again.

I am here, ready to support you, guide you, let you know you’re not alone, and give you the best care possible.

Schedule your free 15-minute phone consultation now!

What Makes Therapy with Me Different

I pride myself in being real, approachable, and knowing how to mix in some humor, while getting you where you want to be in life. I have a good balance of support, yet I’m able to challenge you just enough but not too much. Life is tough enough I'm not adding to the overwhelm.

I like to be down to earth and cut through the bullshit.. yes, I curse because I'm human and sometimes it just gives the right emphasis, you know?

Meaning, we are going to have some fun AND we are going to get to the real stuff.

I try to find what will work best for you and what fits you best. Typically, it’s finding some coping skills that help to get you feeling a little better. Then, it may involve diving more into patterns of behaviors or thought processes. Trust me, you won’t be sprawled across the couch trying to recall your earliest childhood memories.

I also love to involve creativity. I’m obsessed with music and know it is an important part of many people’s lives. I mean I have a whole page of referencing Taylor Swift lyrics. I knew I had to bring this passion into my work. Throughout grad school I wrote multiple papers and even gave an international presentation on how music can be incorporated with traditional talk therapy. If it is so much of our day to day lives, why not use it to our advantage!

I approach therapy from a variety of evidence practices.  Including but not limited to:

  • Cognitive and Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

  • Interpersonal Therapy

  • Humanistic/Existential Therapy

  • Solution-Focused Therapy

Given all these fancy terms, I try to find what is going to work for you in therapy and how concerns like anxiety, depression, and adjusting to life impact your life. Therapy is not one size fits all, but I’m also not going to throw things at you and see what sticks.

As a Psychologist, I know how to artfully and masterfully integrate therapy modalities to create a result that is customized to you. Come check out my Vlog to learn some helpful mental health tips!

Or just schedule a time for your free 15-minute phone consultation to see how I can help you!

Education

And just so you know that I’m legitimate and know what I’m talking about, let me tell you a bit more about my education and background.

 

Licensed Clinical Psychologist (License #PY9916)

Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, otherwise known as Psy.D. from Nova Southeastern University

Master of Science in Clinical Psychology from Nova Southeastern University

Bachelor of Science in Psychology from University of Central Florida

What is a Psychologist? What's a Psy.D.?

The word Psychologist can seem intimidating with visions of serious white coats and clip boards. Couldn't be further from the truth, I actually wear jeans most days and only have my clip board adorned with InsideOut characters during the first session.

It means that after college I spent 5 years getting my doctorate and received copious amounts specialized training and supervision. It also allows me to conduct testing reserved for my level of degree.

People are often curious about the Psy.D. so let me tell you about it, and why I chose getting my doctorate in psychology over a Master’s or Ph.D. in Psychology.

A Psy.D. is tailored to working with the clinical population, meaning all the classes and experiences are geared toward working one on one with clients. On the other hand, Ph.D. tends to be aimed at conducting research. While everything I do is based in research, I was not interested in running anymore statistics.

I also knew for myself I wanted to have multiple years of quality training before fully entering the field. I’m dealing with the brain, so needless to say, it felt important, which is I why I decided to do a Doctorate instead of a Master’s.

Really, I'm just a nerd that loves learning and gathering a lot of information. I literally watch Jeopardy every night, No shame.

My Training Experiences

After completing my undergraduate degree, I completed my doctoral training in 5 years, which included 4 years of clinical practice and supervision in different settings, including an American Psychological Association approved internship site, all of which accumulated to over 4,000 hours. Following graduation, another 2,000 hours of practice and supervision is needed before licensure. It was hard work, but I wouldn’t change it for the world because I know I can be confident in doing what I love to do.

I hope I answered all your questions for you and you’re feeling ready to schedule your complimentary 15-minute phone consultation.