training & experience

Books were one of my first psychology teachers. As a child and adolescent reading classical literature, I was inspired by the diversity and depth of characters portrayed by the authors. I was intrigued by the philosophical and psychological questions the writers and their characters were wrestling with. These questions, of course, are universal to all human beings (and they fascinated me too as a precocious child) yet unique to each individual life. This interplay of universality and particularity is what I find amazing about the field of psychology and the practice of psychoanalytic psychotherapy.

Fast forward several years later. Taking a General psychology class during my freshman year of college was an eye (and in some ways, soul) opening and life changing experience. I remember thinking, “I can actually study this and make a living understanding people and helping them live more fulfilling lives? Sign me up!”

During graduate school, I discovered the field of psychoanalysis and once again experienced a sense of awe and gratitude for the gift of finding a professional home and it finding me. After years of psychoanalytic study and personal work, I still experience the study and practice of psychoanalytic psychotherapy as a never-ending source of learning and discovery.

During my doctoral training in clinical psychology, I worked in various settings including university counseling centers, community mental health clinics, and hospitals. Since graduating with my PhD, I have worked in a group private practice, along with teaching in the doctoral program in clinical psychology at Wheaton College for 16 years. I have also worked as a staff psychologist in an intensive outpatient program for emerging adults.

In 2017, I graduated with a certificate in psychoanalysis from the Chicago Center for Psychoanalysis. I have been in private practice since 2008. Through these training and work experiences, I emerged with an appreciation for the complexity and diversity of psychological suffering and human resilience. I have also grown skeptical of simplistic approaches to treatment that promise quick fix solutions to longstanding problems.

I am deeply convinced that lasting growth and change often takes time and investment but that the benefits of this investment are almost always worthwhile.

credentials