My Background

My initial studies were in philosophy and human rights before training in psychoanalysis at The National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis (NPAP) in New York City. Prior to becoming a psychoanalyst, I founded Empowering Development Alternatives (EDA), a non profit organization dedicated to supporting the education of orphaned children in rural Uganda. www.em-powerin.org

I was fortunate to encounter psychoanalysis through my own personal treatment. That experience opened doors in my being that I did not know existed and it led me to become a psychoanalyst myself. I believe a significant aspect of any psychoanalytic work is the relationship with the therapist which becomes the vehicle through which unconscious patterns of relating can be explored, experienced, and understood. This process reflects how past emotional experiences shape how you live, work and relate in the present. Through the experience of working together we will be able to observe this in the ‘here and now’, and unlike in the past, you will be able to say or feel things more freely in the hope of weaving new ways of relating and better dealing with what's troubling you.

My Approach

Some people who come to see me have often tried other methods first, which might have been initially helpful but have not ultimately addressed the core issues. This requires a deeper exploration of the unconscious, seeing “behind” the symptoms as it were, looking at how our early experiences, particularly traumatic ones, are stored in our unconscious and prevented from causing further emotional pain by defense mechanisms such as denial (failing to acknowledge a fact in spite of clear evidence) and repression (completely blocking the memory of an event even though it happened). This can cause issues in adulthood as these repressed feelings return as depression, anxiety, anger, or other problems you may be currently experiencing. Together we can understand these symptoms as signs with a particular message; signs which urgently call for a change and a desire to live more authentically.

As an analytically trained clinician, I can deeply listen to your particular concerns and offer an individualized approach that meets your needs. Together we will build a relationship that will enable you to access parts of yourself that feel wounded and gently bring them into alive expression. Connecting to dreams, desires, imagination, and memory is also part of the therapeutic process and can help bring about healing. Ultimately, I believe our sense of being is naturally capable of nourishing healthy aspects of the self and transforming wounded or stuck parts.

If we end up working together I encourage you to ask for what you need from me and to maintain an open dialogue about our work and relationship. In my practice, I use a multi model depth oriented approach that integrates effective psychotherapeutic strategies together with my formal training in eastern meditation.