My Experience as a Therapist and Personal Bio

My Background

I am a Clinical Psychologist with 20 years of experience providing therapy to children, adolescents, and adults. My specific training was in dynamic cognitive psychology. The former looks to find how the past influences our behavior and emotions now, while the latter focuses more on the here-and-now in changing negative or non-productive thinking. More recently, I have been using hybrid models, such as humanistic psychology, which looks at the past to the degree it influences present mood and outlook but otherwise takes an optimistic, empowering, forward-looking view.

History of my practice

My practice has been broadly based, so I’ve worked with people with a wide variety of challenges, goals, and symptoms. Most commonly, I’ve worked with people who are experiencing depression, anxiety, worry, reduced self-esteem, or attention/focus challenges. In some cases, these concerns are longstanding; in others, they are transitional. I work with individuals, couples, and families and do psychological testing. I do not see children as individual clients, but I do provide family therapy.

Who I am

I have lived in the Boston area my whole life and am raising four children. I am deeply involved in my community, providing everything from youth sports coaching to parent and teacher workshops. I have done a great deal of volunteer work in psychology and human services, including being on several Boards of Directors of non-profits. I stay quite active, being involved in various sports leagues.

My higher education started at Tufts University, where I was a Child Study major, and then I went to The University of Hartford for my master’s and doctorate. More recently, I got my MBA at UMass. Before returning to practice full-time, I was in executive leadership roles, and I still do a lot of consulting in the healthcare field. Throughout all of this, I have maintained my private practice, though it was sometimes quite small.

My qualifications

During my education at the University of Hartford, I completed around 3,000 hours of supervised training before I graduated and around 2,000 the year afterward. Since becoming licensed, I have done 240 hours of continuing education, including most recently taking an 18-hour course designed to ensure that I could provide telehealth with the same quality and effectiveness as in-person treatment. I also recently became credentialed by the National Register of Health Service Psychologists, which is only available to psychologists with the highest education and training requirements.

What does it all mean?

There are many excellent psychologists out there. I am quite proud of my field for the level of commitment, training, empathy, and effectiveness so many of my fellow psychologists show. So, how do you read a page like this and know whether I am a good match or whether another clinical psychologist with a similar but slightly different bio is for you? The short answer is to be in touch, and we can talk and see.

The longer answer: several factors may affect your decision about which clinical psychologist to choose for you:

1. Approach: What specialties does the psychologist have regarding specific training and experience? In my case, I have experience with Cognitive, Positive, and Humanistic psychology. What this means is that I am a good fit if you want a solution-focused, positive, strength-based approach that will look back at the past as far as how it influences things today, but we won’t get “stuck” there. That approach is not for everyone. Some people want to dive deeper into the past and understand current struggles and challenges in the context of early events in life. In that case, look for a psychologist who lists a “Dynamic,” “Psychodynamic,” or “Psychoanalytic” approach.

2. Individual, Couples, Family: You may come in for individual therapy, but you think there is a chance this will turn into family therapy. This can be particularly true if you bring in a teenager or older child. You may want to ensure the psychologist is trained in both approaches.

3. A match for you: Some people look for a psychologist who is a match in some way, such as having kids, growing up in the area, being young, being older, having a similar cultural background, etc. Other times, they may want someone quite different – such as when a person contemplating marriage or having children wants a psychologist who is married or has children or when a younger person would prefer an older psychologist who has gone through what they are going through.

4. Personality: This may be the most important variable but is also the hardest to pick up from a bio. You may want a psychologist who you “click” with. Maybe it is something easy to see, like a similar sense of humor, but often, it is a general feeling that is hard to describe. This is why you should always go into your first session looking to make sure you feel it is a match. It may also be why you should not obsess too much about #s 1-3 since this last factor may be more important. Sometimes, it’s best to go with your gut feeling on this!

Next steps

Now that you’ve read this page, considering the factors in the prior section, what should happen next? If it sounds like I may be a fit, please feel free to give me a call or send me an e-mail. Therapy involves a mutual assessment of fit: You need to decide if what I have to offer fits what you are looking for and whether my style matches what you think will work best for you. I will make sure that I think I can help you with your unique concerns – whether I am potentially the right therapist who can bring meaningful, measurable, and lasting change.

We will schedule an intake appointment if a phone conversation suggests it is worth meeting. This will allow us to talk in person, where you can ask questions and get a feel for my approach and style. Once again, at the end of the initial session, we need to decide whether this is the best course for you. There is never any obligation or commitment. As we move forward, we can discuss how long treatment might last and how you are doing. Thanks for reading this through. Whether you call me or any other provider, I hope the information on this page proves helpful!

Verified: Psychology Today also verifies that the psychologist is presenting her or himself accurately with regard to licensure, and experience