I grew up in the Bay Area and Sierra Nevada mountains  After earning a Bachelors in literature, creative writing and dance from UC Santa Cruz, I embarked on a career of service and teaching. I volunteered in Nepal and India, worked as a naturalist throughout California (I even got to train a Great Horned Owl named Zeus!) and led experiential education expeditions in the Amazon jungle. These experiences informed my work as the international internship coordinator for a gap year program where I helped students to discover their unique interests, skills and passions, preparing them for the next steps on their academic and personal journeys. This work inspired me to pursue a Masters in Social Work at San Diego State University where I completed extensive research on the impacts of increased screen use on mental health.  I have served as a play therapist with children, supported families experiencing homelessness, and worked as a therapist at the community college level offering individual, couples, and family therapy, as well as leading groups on healthy relationships, grief and loss, and mindfulness and meditation.  As a therapist I work from a strengths-based, client-centered model, helping the client to discover their inner resilience and power to continually grow and transform their relationship with their friends, family, community, and themselves.  When I am not supporting my clients to make impactful change in their lives, you can find me hiking with my sweet rescue dog Stella Luna, reading, camping, or drinking a delicious smoothie in the sunshine somewhere beautiful.