Oregon Compassion Therapy

The path to healing lies hidden inside of you. My role is to help you gently discover, explore, and walk that path. By deeply listening to your unique life's journey, we can identify your inner wisdom, strength, and compassion. As we explore this path, these qualities become the guides on your journey. Trusting in the innate wisdom of the mind and compassion of the heart, together we walk the path to healing, cultivating and developing the deepest levels of emotional resilience, happiness, and self-awareness. I work with anxiety, trauma, shame, and grief. Within these experiences I specialize in: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and related anxiety disorders; trauma including dissociation, disembodiment, traumatic memories, panic, and / or fear; an intrusive inner critical voice / part of ourselves that makes us feel shame, guilt, or worthlessness; and helping couples identity and repair unhealthy relationship patterns and coping mechanisms related to these experiences. People who I work with may be experiencing the following: intrusive, unwanted, and obsessive thoughts / behaviors; feeling like your mind and emotional responses are stuck or cycling through a painful loop; dissociation, feeling like you are not in your body, and cannot connect with emotions and sensations the way you want to; intense feelings of panic and terror; experiencing an intrusive inner critical voice / part of ourselves that says you are doing the wrong thing and not worthy of care; and falling into habitual relational patterns related to these issues that cause ourselves and our partners pain, and that we are having difficulty changing or identifying. ___________________________________ Therapeutic Approach You are your own person. There is no single modality that is right for everyone. Instead, I weave together diverse therapeutic approaches to address your personal needs. Here are some of the tools I draw from: Somatic Therapy provides a way to process feelings in your body, so they do not feel stuck or overwhelming. Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy cultivates a heightened awareness of thoughts and feelings, allowing you to engage with them in healthier ways. Behavioral Therapy helps you reshape unhealthy patterns linked to thoughts and feelings. Existential Therapy contributes to philosophical or spiritual integration, aiding in understanding, building, and repairing your unique frameworks of self. Compassion Focused Therapy equips you with tools for positive self-development, addressing the inner critic as well as feelings of shame and guilt. I believe that the client-therapist alliance is the most important aspect of therapy. It is vital that you feel seen, safe, and supported. Our sessions together focus on your goals and needs, in an environment centered in compassion, non-judgment, and deep listening. ___________________________________ About Me: Before becoming a therapist, I gained over 10 years of experience providing non-clinical counseling services. These included roles such as Director of Care Services and senior Care Team member for an international peer-support organization. Additionally, I served as the director of a teen leadership wilderness adventure program and worked as a meditation teacher. In 2023, I was invited to Harvard University Medical School to co-lead a training for Post-Doctoral Fellows in Integrative Medicine. The focus was on exploring how specific types of meditation can potentially exacerbate anxiety and dissociation, leading to experiences resembling Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Depersonalization and Derealization Disorder (DPDR). This training delved into the neuroscience underlying Meditation-Related Adverse Effects (MRAEs) and discussed optimal care modalities for managing conditions such as increased anxiety and dissociation. I have specialized training in engaging with OCD and related anxiety disorders through several therapies including Exposure Response Prevention Therapy, Somatic Therapy, and Compassion Focused Therapy. I have trained and worked with one of the world's leading experts in trauma and dissociation. I have also studied, practiced, and taught Compassion Training as a meditation teacher for a decade to help others heal their inner critics. If this resonates with you, please contact me for a free 20 minute phone / video consultation to explore working together. You are not alone. I'm here to help. ___________________________________ Insurance and Fees: I highly value financial transparency. My out of pocket fees are listed below. In order to provide cost effective therapy when possible, I also accept Oregon Health Plan (Open Card only), clients using their out of network insurance benefits coverage, which I can help with, and I also have a limited number of sliding scale appointment spaces. Insurances Accepted: Oregon Health Plan (Open Card only) Fees: $150 Individual Therapy - 53 minutes $200 Couples Therapy - 53 minutes Please reach out if you have any questions about fees or insurance coverage, including how to access out of network benefits coverage from your insurance provider. It is an ethical goal for me to work with people to keep specialized services affordable for all who need them.