When you Subliminally dress like the artwork you see everyday.

White woman with dark hair posing in front of a picture

“it has finally dawned on me that if i build a home within myself, a palace of peace created with my own awareness and love, this can be the refuge i have always been seeking.”

―Yung Pueblo, Clarity & Connection

About:

I practice from a psychodynamic and attachment-based perspective, which means I help clients explore how early relationships and experiences may be influencing their current struggles and patterns. My goal is to create a safe and supportive space where you feel understood, valued, and empowered to make meaningful changes in your life. I also integrate elements of existential therapy, ACT, CBT, IFS, and Polyvagal theory to meet each client’s unique needs. Additionally, I use humor in my work as a way to build connection, ease tension, and foster resilience.

I hold a Master’s degree in Counseling and a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Global Studies (Latin American focus) from Portland State University. My training at the PSU Community Counseling Clinic and years of working in both restaurants and higher education gave me the privilege of supporting people from many different walks of life, including those navigating poverty, addiction, immigration concerns, disability, and systemic barriers. These experiences, along with my own background growing up in a single-parent home with parental addiction and incarceration has significantly influenced my decision to become a counselor. I strive to be a genuine, trusting and safe person for clients who have historically lacked safety and trust in relationships and within systems.

Outside of counseling, I enjoy banter and social commentary, cooking, crafts, playing trivia, 90s pop culture, and working on improving my second-grade Spanish.

Licensure Status:

I am currently a Registered Associate Counselor in the state of Oregon. My clinical supervisors are Natasha Laumei, MA, LPC, LMHC and Emily Berry, MS, LPC. Please see their respective website (laumeicounseling.com & emilyberrycounseling.com) for information about their experience and therapeutic approaches.

Trainings I have completed:

  • Supporting Clients Facing Political Anxiety and Immigration Fears

  • Introduction to Internal Family Systems therapy

  • ACT with Compassion: Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Affective Science to Deepen Your Work with Clients Stuck in Self-Criticism and Shame

  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) Introduction workshop

  • Integrating Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) for Clients at Risk for Suicide

  • Breaking barriers in masculinity and oppressive gender norms: Developing competency in fostering a working alliance with cisgender male clients

  • Suicide Prevention and Intervention for Latino/a/e Communities

  • Polyvagal Theory: Pathways to Stillness with Deb Dana