COMPETENT, COMPASSIONATE
Gender TherapyWhen did you know
you weren’t different?
-Alok Vaid-Menon (THEY/THEM)
Some people come to see me because they are questioning their gender identity. Some wonder how they would ever express how they truly feel to family, friends, at school or work. Some are not sure what to do with people who misgender them. Others want to figure out what transition means to them. They need help with how to navigate paperwork like legal name change or have conversations about hormones, fertility, insurance, or surgery. Many times people need a trans competent therapist to talk about things like depression, anxiety, OCD, trauma or dissociation. They are tired of having to “teach” their therapist about gender. We work together to make connections, create gender goals, life goals, and decide what interventions, information and support you need to feel better, to feel your authentic self.
EXPERIENCE WORKING WITH
Gender & Identity
I have advanced training and experience supporting trans womxn, NB folx and trans masculine individuals, as well as systems, parents and their LGBTQ+ children. It is important to have a safe place to explore your identity, figure out how to come out at school or work, what to say to immediate and extended family, talk about dating or current relationships, talk about the effects of heteronormativity and cissexism. I can help you connect to supportive resources. Not every gender expansive person needs or wants medical intervention, but I believe in informed consent for all genders, support ICATH, am extremely familiar WPATH and insurance requirements for support letters. I am committed to helping you navigate requirements and to make reaching your gender goals as smooth as possible.
I have deep respect for all backgrounds, genders, races, perspectives, orientations, religious and nonreligious beliefs.
formal
Education & Training
B.S. in Psychology, the University of California, San Diego, 1990
M.S.W., the University of Washington, 1994, with a focus on mental health
Advanced Mentorship and Consultation with Lisette Lahana, LICSW, and WPATH GEI foundation and advanced mental health courses toward WPATH certification anticipated 2022
Post graduate certificate 27 credit hours, Advanced Training in Affirmative Therapy for Transgender Communities, Widener University
Professional and Family portions of Gender Odyssey Conference from 2016 to 2019
WPATH member since 2018.
EMDR training completion and certification anticipated Sept 2021
Lifespan Integration Trauma Protocol Levels I, II, III, 2018
Washington State Licensed Independent Social Worker (LICSW)
PROFESSIONAL
Experience
I have worked with children, adolescents and adults for over 25 years. My clinical internship was completed at Harborview Sexual Assault Center. I have worked in research, school based therapeutic treatment programs, community mental health, and hospital settings with a focus on crisis intervention, mental health evaluations, pregnancy, miscarriage, post partum depression, and chronic illness. As a hospice social worker, I supported patients and their families through end of life and bereavement. It has been my absolute privilege to have a private practice dedicated to gender expansive and questioning people and their families since 2017.
THERAPEUTIC
Approach
You need a safe environment to build trust, and share sensitive issues. I use a compassionate, strength based approach, and think in terms of life development while working together. I use evidence based practice, including CBT and to look at how your thoughts, feelings and behavior are related, and also neuropsychology, to understand normal reactions to trauma and to help with emotional regulation. I use lifespan integration to treat trauma and improve mental health. To engage people in life changing therapy, I also help explore how relationship patterns learned early in life affect patterns that are causing current stress, emotional pain and “stuck points”. I hope to empower you to find your voice, experience meaningful relationships, safely unmask, and create a life where you feel supported and at your best.