I have been practicing since 2006. I am a licensed clinical psychologist with a doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Roosevelt University in Chicago. Most of my work has been done with adults and late teens of all backgrounds, races, creeds, and sexual orientations. I have treated individuals with severe mental diagnoses, incarcerated individuals, and community individuals with more common complaints, such as depression, anxiety, bipolar, and personality disturbances.

I have a "laid-back" personality with a good sense of humor, which tends to put clients at ease and promote an open atmosphere for sharing. I have experience working with adults in the following situations: depression and/or anxiety, severe mental illness, bipolar, borderline personality, reentry into society for incarcerated individuals, anger management, and interpersonal problems. Here is an example of how I approach a therapeutic situation would be anxiety, particularly specific anxiety: Say you are anxious about riding elevators. We might begin with the foundation of mindfulness, which is relaxation and meditation exercises. We would then approach the anxiety of riding in an elevator slowly. Today’s typical approach is through "flooding," which involves immersing the person in the anxiety-producing situation until the anxiety remits.

I find a progressive exposure approach produces more acceptance and you will feel more comfortable pursuing the therapy. So, this would involve you progressively exposing yourself to elevator rides with mindfulness as a foundation to support the endeavor. We would work together on exactly how to begin the exposure and progress in a fashion you would be comfortable with. Eventually, you would comfortably ride an elevator to whatever floor, with mindfulness training as the foundation to be turned to if there are setbacks. Generally speaking, I use a mindfulness foundation for most problems, followed by any of the following treatments that seem appropriate: acceptance commitment therapy, client-centered therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), or dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT). However, one of the most interesting aspects of therapy I have learned, above and beyond the treatments and philosophies psychologists offer, is that a client’s first need is to be heard.

A client-centered approach offering empathy, compassion, and understanding is necessary for building the rapport necessary for working together to tackle one’s problems. I thoroughly enjoy my profession and helping people and look forward to the opportunity of working with you and hearing about the issues that may be standing in the way of your achieving the goals you most value.