Welcome!

My Background:

I started my career as a mental health professional working at a large mental health agency in where I was able to serve a wide variety of individuals (kids and adults), families, and couples. Next I worked at an outpatient clinic that focused on youth and family therapy where I had the privilege of caring for individuals and families that had some really intense situations. This work was deep and demanding but I would not trade it for anything because it made me the strong therapist that I am today. 

Prior to opening my practice I worked for a local school district providing counseling and social emotional support to students of all grades, and their families as well as providing mental health consultation to school administration and staff. 

All of these experiences allowed me to gain an in-depth understanding of trauma, depression, anxiety, and many other components of mental health; most of all human relationships. 

My Approach:

My style is supportive and encouraging with a healthy dose of pushing you forward. While I think coping skills are useful, I am a bigger advocate of tackling the underlying cause.

The real Sara:

Now you might think “alright you are qualified, but what are you like as a person?” Well, that is a great question! Here is what I want you to know about me:

I am down to earth and try to be practical. As a therapist I am always looking for strengths in a person and new perspective that can be helpful for the client, and I am also realistic. Sometimes situations just suck and there really is not a bright side to it, and I am not going to convince you otherwise, and we can work through that.

I was raised in a blue collar family and I was a first generation college student. I mention this because sometimes people are intimidated by “professionals” or feel that they will not be respected and I get that, but that will not be the case with me because I have lived and been exposed to many different lifestyles and I know that your title does not determine who you are.

Last, I want you to know that I LOVE my job and I know it was what I was meant to do. When you choose to comes to me I am truly honored to be your support and to be let in to your life. COVID was not friendly to anyone, therapists included, and it has caused some therapists to step back from counseling. I am grateful that I made it though and still know this is my passion. Because I love being a therapist I am always working to get better, this means I generally do far more training that I am required to do; and I frequently do research between our sessions if there is something that I am not familiar with (such as a medical condition or religion). I do keep my caseload low enough that I have time to give a lot of attention to each client both in session and outside of sessions.