About

My Counseling Specialties

Throughout my career, I’ve discovered that there are a couple of areas that I'm best at working in, and I continually strive to get even more skilled in working within those areas. One of those areas is helping teen girls and young women to overcome the struggle with anxiety and live confidently and happily. My other area of focus is helping teens and young adults figure out who they are, where they belong, and to really flourish in that place. Teen and early adult years can be so tough. It’s even tougher when you don’t believe in yourself or your worth, when you feel like you’re always on the outside looking in, and especially when you don’t have anyone to relate to (or feel like no one relates to you).

“Wait, you work with girls? Young women? Last I checked you’re a dude.” You’re right. I’m a guy. You also read correctly that I work with teen girls and young women. Believe it or not, a male therapist can be really helpful in some unique ways (and in the traditional ways you'd expect from therapy). If you watch enough tv, youtube, Netflix, social media, etc., you can see that girls aren’t always given great messages from or about guys. A male therapist can help show what a healthy male relationship looks like. I work to be a positive male model for appropriate boundaries, active listening, and being sensitive and in tune to feelings. Over the course of my career, this has proven helpful time and time again for many of the young women and adolescent girls whom I’ve worked with. It’s been my experience that girls and women are generally completely comfortable, and we are able to openly and effectively address the issues that brought them to therapy.

What Counseling with Me Looks Like

Honestly, it will probably look and feel like it’s a sort of laid back conversation. But it’s all about you. I work for you, after all. We will talk about what is important to you. As far as types of therapy, I mainly use a combination of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Person Centered Therapy (and you definitely don’t have to be interested in reading about that).

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is very well researched to be one of the most useful types of counseling for anxiety, as well as depression, adjustment to change, and quite a few other issues. CBT focuses on thoughts, feelings, and actions. That doesn’t mean you’ll get the “How do you feel about that?” question over and over again, though.

In Person Centered Therapy I make sure that you feel like we’re going in the right direction. We work on what’s important to you, and I won’t tell you what your goals need to be. You’re the expert on you. You can be yourself without being judged. Person Centered Therapy can be useful for improving self-confidence, figuring out who you are, and building relationships.

Ultimately, with the combination of these two types of therapy, we work on your goals, build on your strengths, and do what works for you.

Why anxiety?

To be perfectly honest, I’ve been there myself. I haven’t shared your experiences or your life, but I have dealt with anxiety. I understand those feelings past what a textbook or an educational seminar can teach.

Long story short – I’m good at what I do…and I enjoy it. I don’t promise miracles, but I promise that I’ll give it everything I have for you. If you’ve read this far, I’m guessing you’re ready to do the same for yourself.

 

Bio

Outside of counseling…

I enjoy spending time with my own kids and as many dogs as I can. I love listening to music and performing, writing, reading, volunteering, and watching football. Growing up in Middle Tennessee, I’ve seen this area change a lot. I remember when Franklin was small and the Cool Springs Galleria Mall was in the middle of a field. It’s been great to see the area grow and become filled with people from all over the country (and world). I’m happy to still be here after so many years.

Professional bio...

My education includes a B.S. in Psychology from MTSU, as well as an M.Ed. in Mental Health Counseling from MTSU, in a CACREP accredited program. My experience includes working for a community mental health agency as a school-based therapist in both Davidson and Maury Counties for nearly 4 school years, followed by operating my private practice since January of 2015. I have been licensed by the State of Tennessee as a Licensed Professional Counselor w/ Mental Health Service Provider designation since 2014.