Treatment is results oriented, which means we work together at the beginning to define the changes that are meaningful to you. In a basic sense, psychotherapy is for thinking about feelings. We are all part of systems, be they family, work or society. The outcome is more freedom to be yourself. With children, treatment approach is family-centered. In the long run, the best therapist for your child is you, the parent. Parent consultation is an integral part of treatment for children and teens. Play space, art therapy and parent observation available. Psychological testing and family meetings are options. In Couples Counseling or Marital Therapy the patient is the relationship. In couples treatment, i thoughtfully guide your interactions to encourage better understanding of each other. This approach reduces the tendency to blame one another for differences, and leads the two of you into your own manner of accepting them. Pet-Assisted Therapy (PAT).

Along with my twenty five years plus of professional counseling practice, I have a lifetime of challenges that have added to my understanding and compassion of my clients; Joyful experiences such as adoption to life altering traumas as death by suicide and illness of loved ones. All people are different and there is not just one or two or even three "appropriate" ways to deal with life events. Our timelines and our processing needs are individual. Each person is capable of knowing what is right for themselves. Together, respectfully, I help my clients find what is helpful for themselves. Then my client will reach their goals with my support, suggestion and encouragement. All efforts, whether productive or not, are valuable. Change is inevitable and my clients feel empowered to make adjustments that bring the results that are needed. Your journey,your life values; I will accompany you to understand and meet your own needs.

Northampton Sex Therapy Associates, LLC (NSTA) is the only group private practice in New England dedicated exclusively to providing sex therapy, relationship therapy, and sexuality counseling to individuals, couples, and people in poly and non-monogamous relationships. Like most other forms of psychotherapy practice, sex therapy is exclusively talk therapy. This means meeting regularly with a therapist to talk about how to overcome whatever problem you have presented. During these meetings, sex therapists share their knowledge of human sexuality and expertise in working with sexual functioning and relationship challenges. Our clinical approach is grounded in research and evidence, rather than smoke and mirrors or vague, general promises. We provide clinical approaches and solutions that actually work, based on research and clinical experience. Over the course of a person's lifetime, multiple factors can add up and lead to difficulties with sex. Stress, trauma, illness, the side effects of medications, depression, and lack of self-esteem often negatively impact a person’s sexual functioning and desire. It is not uncommon for couples and individuals to experience sex-related challenges at some point in their lives. Everyone, and every body, deserves to experience satisfying, exciting, loving, and fulfilling sexual relationships and sexual contact. Sex therapy can often help. Most clients come to us with trauma, shame and guilt about the ways in which they are sexual and embodied. NSTA therapists understand the ways in which trauma—and the resulting fear and anxiety—impacts sexual functioning, and inhibits healthy sexual behavior. We help clients overcome sexual difficulties by using trauma-­informed clinical practices. Anxiety and shame are at the root of most sexual dysfunctions. These are typically emotions and feelings that trap human beings in rigid and fearful ways of expressing, or not expressing, themselves. These emotions and feelings have a powerful impact, particularly on how we manifest ourselves in sexual ways, sometimes to the point of retreating and hiding our bodies and sexuality, and occasionally to places of sexual compulsivity and over-expression. Regardless of the ways in which clients experience challenges with sex, we are in a unique position to help them navigate the often complex pathway toward feeling at home in their bodies and in their sexuality.

Everyone needs a little help sometimes; whether you have been through a major traumatic event, struggled with a personal issue most of your life, or would like to receive a little extra help coping with day to day stress. I believe everyone has the capability to make positive changes that will help enhance their quality of life. I believe there is great value in creating a therapeutic environment that fosters support, safety, respect, and trust. I believe in the greatness and the power of will and that every individual has the strength and the resilience within themselves to create their own path.

Each of us is unique, complex and special. Together we can resolve the inner and outer conflicts that create pain and exhaustion. Our life often brings experiences not of our choosing. Sometimes we’re hurt by others. Sometimes we don’t fit easily into the world we live in. Sometimes what life brings feels too big to accept and manage. I can help you find peaceful and practical ways of doing the best you can with what is, of managing your self and situations with compassion and skill, of finding joy and nourishment in this life at this time. For over 25 years I have been practicing my craft with children, adolescents, middle adults, elders, couples and families. They have come to me with developmental, situational and relational issues. Some had experienced tragedies; some felt overwhelmed by their children or partner. Some were deeply grieving, some filled with anger. Some had illnesses or disabilities they wish they didn’t. Each of them added to my understanding of what it is to be human. Most of us long for happiness, self acceptance, caring relationships and success in our endeavors. Together, drawing from my extensive training and experience and your inner and outer resources, we can create meaningful, lasting and joyful change.