I'm a licensed marriage and family therapist, a longtime student of contemplative practice, and someone who has spent a good deal of my life searching for a more meaningful and alive way of being.
My own path has shaped the way I sit with people.
For much of my teens and twenties, I was drawn to big questions about suffering, belonging, spirituality, and what makes a good life. I was also very good at pushing myself.
I had absorbed the idea, from my family history and the world around me, that being strong meant being tough. That growth required effort, discipline, and a willingness to endure discomfort. That being a good person meant being selfless.
Some of those qualities served me well. Others left me feeling increasingly disconnected from myself.
Even some of the spiritual practices I turned to for relief became another way to work on myself.
Over time, I began to discover something different.
That gentleness could be a source of strength. That learning to trust my body and my own discernment mattered as much as understanding my mind. That I didn't have to become more perfected to become more fully myself.
And that the experience of being met with genuine warmth and care could be deeply transformative.