A Little About Me

I went to the University of Massachusetts with the intentions of being a journalist but I became fascinated with psychology when I read Dibs in Search of Self by Virginia Axline. Dibs was a little boy who appeared lost within himself and was highly avoidant of social interactions.  A year of non-directive play therapy drew Dibs out of his shell and he became a happy child. I’d been bitten by the psychology bug. I changed my major and graduated in 1985 with a Bachelor of Science in psychology with an emphasis in Applied Behavior Analysis. In 1989 I obtained a Masters in Education through the School of Counseling Psychology at Temple University. In 1998 I earned a Masters in Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania. Two years later I got around to obtaining my License in Social Work.

I’ve worked with troubled teenagers first in group homes, then in a boarding school, in a high school, and in their homes and communities. I’ve worked with survivors of violent crime, rape, assault, and sexual abuse. I’ve worked with addicts in many settings. I’ve worked as mobile therapist, behavior specialist, and family and play therapist to families and children with autism including children on the autistic spectrum who experienced severe trauma. I’ve provided family counseling and therapy to a wide range of people with a myriad of presenting issues.

My areas of specialty include but are not limited to anxiety, depression, trauma including trauma related to crime, physical, emotional and sexual abuse and domestic violence, adjudicated youth, families with autism, divorced, separated and blended families and children in foster care. I am sensitive to and embracing of the wide diversity of people, inclusive of all races, ethnicities, religions and gender and personal identities.

I invite you to my Facebook page. It seems I’m a adverse to posting there but every so often I manage to make the effort.

Wherever you are in your journey, I’m here to listen and help.