why therapy?
"Hope is your finest work of art" - John Hiatt
Life is difficult. It just is. We are taught to be fair and expect fairness as children, and most of us internalize that expectation and long for justice. We go out into the world to pursue our dreams and do our best and treat others as we hope to be treated and we believe what we were told, that it will all work out. And then so often it doesn't, at least not in any way that resembles fairness. And then we have to listen to people say, "Who said life was fair?" ("Well, a damn lot of people told me that, probably you included, Dad!") It's a bitter pill to accept that fairness was a lie. It's tough enough when someone cuts in line and you get in trouble for saying something. But when it's cancer? When it's incest? When it's violence because of how you look or who you love? When it's burying your child? It can grind you down. It can break you. What brings you to therapy may not be this bleak, but it may be. It may be worse. Whatever it is, you will be safe to speak of it here, if you choose to, and you will be understood. You will also be safe to leave it unspoken if you choose, and we can find other ways to heal the harm it has done. There is no darkness too deep for hope.
About my practice
Safe and Inclusive
Safe and Inclusive
Safe and Inclusive
I am committed to providing a safe space, safe relationship, and safe process for all clients, no matter their background, their beliefs, their orientation, their gender, their preferences, or their pronouns. (Mine are he/him) LGBTQIA+ clients are welcome, accepted and understood.
How I Work
Safe and Inclusive
Safe and Inclusive
My work with every client is first and foremost centered upon a safe, accepting, empathic relationship. I meet clients where they are, understanding that people often aren't sure what brings them to therapy, or what to work on, or which approaches feel right and are effective for them. I draw from a wide range of traditions, techniques and theories to meet the specific needs of each individual client. Strong influences in my work include the prominent developmental and psychoanalytic schools of thought, object relations, self psychology, existential psychotherapy, Bowen Family Systems, evolutionary psychology, client centered therapy, classic and current trauma informed therapies, and an expanding interest in the use of psychedelics for the treatment of trauma and other conditions. If you noticed that Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is not listed, this is because it involves the identification of errors in thinking and the practice of removing or correcting them, which is an inherent element of most therapeutic approaches.
A bit more about me
I was raised in the rural Midwest, near Purdue University, where I grew up expecting to study engineering and then enter the Air Force and learn to fly jets. I ended up studying psychology instead. Quite a left turn, I know, but I ended up on the right path for me. After spending a few years working in both public and private psychiatric hospitals, I went to Vanderbilt University and got a graduate degree in Child and Adolescent Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing, which afforded me the opportunity to practice independently as a therapist. I have lived and worked in or around Nashville ever since.
I am grateful to still very much enjoy working with people to improve their lives. In my free time, I enjoy a variety of interests, including books, music, gaming, cycling, and hiking. I also like roller coasters, eclipses, and the ocean. Mountains are pretty cool too. I have particular interests in animal cognition and animal rights.
At this point in my career, while I still take all comers, I am increasingly involved in working with individuals who have experienced complex or developmental trauma (repeated traumatic exposures during childhood) and who may now experience significant dissociative symptoms. I also work with entrepreneurs, business leaders and creatives who struggle with self doubt or who are seeking to push through some resistance to another level of success. Additionally, I have a longstanding interest in helping people who have developed some significant and highly specialized expertise or skills early in life who no longer have the same access to that career and find themselves at a loss regarding what to do next. (Olympic and professional athletes, musicians and actors, influencers, lawyers and doctors and other professionals who are now unable to practice for some reason.)
Teletherapy Available
While I have an office in Brentwood, Tennessee, I am also available for remote sessions with clients in the 42 Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) states. Click link to see if your state is on the list.