intelligent, ambitious, honest, considerate, humorous, and geeky
build a relationship, talk, process, learn, embrace fandoms & strengths, apply, grow – rinse & repeat.
approachable, casual, and serious when needed.
Masterfully! Therapy is a scientific art. We rely on evidence-based practices constantly even if it isn’t adhering entirely to a single modality. I adore everything under the CBT umbrella – much research backs it. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy has been proven time and time again as an effective theory. However, it can be dry and feel like school sometimes – I do my best to weave its main tenets into less structured ways of conducting therapy. I do my best to tailor therapy to the client while mixing up more traditional methods with less traditional ones. I will use CBT, DBT, ACT, mindfulness while simultaneously using Narrative Therapy, Internal Family Systems, Geek Therapy, Cinema Therapy, Bibliotherapy, movement/stretching/exercise, and/or video games. Therapy is serious at times, but it should also be interesting, approachable, and fun.
Warmly direct and semi-structured. I can be structured when needed and will always come in with some sort of back-up plan if we absolutely need the guidance – however, I HEAVILY emphasize that this is YOUR therapy. You will definitely lead more often than not. We will prioritize what you feel needs to be prioritized – I will adjust accordingly. There are rare moments where I will be much more structured – typically if defenses are at play or if we spent our previous session doing some heavier work in need of further processing. We will balance learning skills/techniques & theories, exploring motives and origins for behaviors, venting, discussing our Spotify Wrappeds, building trust, and practicing/roleplaying skills.
Yes. Both. It honestly depends on the severity of the presenting symptoms and what stage of recovery/healing my client is in when they step into our first session. If symptoms are moderate or occurring regularly, exploring the underlying causes won’t do much until we calm down the pain & discomfort caused by the symptoms. When symptoms are more stabilized, I jointly tackle how to continue to manage those symptoms while exploring the underlying causes. If we can cope with the symptoms better, we can prevent them from exacerbating our condition. If we can explore and heal some of the underlying causes, our baseline of symptom severity will lower significantly. I’ve played sports my entire life and coach them now. When one of my basketball players gets hurt on a play, I don’t try to immediately understand what’s wrong and heal it in that moment – I ask what their symptoms are, help them calm the anxiety they’re feeling, stabilize the injury, help them off the floor, allow them to regulate their emotions a bit, AND then try to figure out what happened to connect them with the proper care they need (if further care is needed beyond rest). Our brains are no different. 🙂
Your body, your doctors, your choice! I am not a doctor. I honor that and respect it. I always redirect my clients back to their providers. With that said, I have worked in various therapy settings: college therapy center, nonprofit community clinic, psychiatric hospital, private practice, and outpatient. I’ve worked with vastly different populations and have found that it truly depends on the person. I will never tell you whether you should or shouldn’t pursue medication. I understand the hesitations/cons and I also understand the pros. Something I like to highlight though is that: medications don’t have to always be a lifelong commitment. I’ve had a huge chunk of clients temporarily utilize medications to help stabilize significant flare ups or crises – they are on meds. for 5-6 months and are able to titrate off carefully under medical supervision. They are able to maintain their stability for significant periods without the medication and only revert back when they’re in need of that extra support. There’s no shame in needing and/or wanting this either – we don’t shame people with diabetes for using insulin.
Committed, willing to learn & try new things; and motivated to create lasting progress for themselves.
I’ll answer this with more of a concept: balancing the abstract & creative with the concrete & clinical. I do my best to weave research-backed structured approaches with more freeform, fun approaches. With mood disorders specifically, I have loved using CBT, DBT, Geek Therapy (movie & book heavy), video games, and Internal Family Systems. With trauma recovery, I especially love using Internal Family Systems (to work on self-compassion & understanding) and the Empty Chair Technique (when appropriate for accountability or forgiveness; Gestalt Therapy).
Essentially, I saw a need and filled it. I had a difficult few years as a teen and young adult. I didn’t grow up with mental health being much of a priority, nor did I believe in therapy much (ironically). As the kids say: I was a hater. However, as a 19-year-old, I sought therapy for the first time. I wasn’t the nicest to my therapist at first – but Keenon was incredible and ended up changing my perspective on therapy & life. I quickly realized there weren’t too many therapists of color. I didn’t like that. I made a vastly unexpected shift to pursuing counseling. There needed to be more geeky, lovingly direct, Hispanic therapists – I’m happily here and glad to add to that number. 🙂
picking things up & putting them down (weight lifting), reading, loving on my dogs, spending time with my partner & family, coaching basketball, being obsessed with Marvel, watching basketball, and playing video games (Marvel Rivals is amazing). Oh – I also make a ridiculous amount of playlists on Spotify and Apple Music; but, I still really only listen to the same 30 songs that I have been singing since 2009.
Basketball is the best sport – even though American basketball is falling behind the world (as evidenced by our close Gold win last year in the Olympics). Steph Curry is the greatest shooter of all time. Marvel heroes are superior, but DC villains are overwhelmingly better — with that said, indie horror comics are the best option out there (far better stories than superhero comics). Horror movies can be used in therapy – “Hereditary” weirdly is a great depiction of grief, as is the “Babadook.” Disney’s “Encanto” is a film that has and will heal so much generational trauma for a lot of Hispanic individuals. Serena Williams and Simone Biles are two of the greatest athletes of all time – regardless of gender; they win consistently and it was never close. Greta Gerwig is an incredible director and one of the best in the 2020s. Jamie Lee Curtis is great… but she did NOT deserve that Oscar over Stephanie Hsu AND Angela Bassett – crazy occurrence; “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is deserving of all its other Oscars though (Ke Quan’s comeback is inspirational).
Dr. K – She is a philosophy professor. Brilliant woman. She served as my mentor in my undergraduate studies and as a makeshift parent (whilst my parents were stationed in Europe). She taught me much about basic human decency, kindness, Catholicism, humility, confidence, respect, and bravery. She helped me navigate all the chaos involved with teen years and early 20s. She’s one of the primary voices that encouraged me to grow, develop, and seek new challenges (graduate school & therapy).
C – She is a therapist herself. A bit older than me. I met her back in my churchy days. She mentored me in many ways professionally – even though she has always felt more like the older sister I always wanted. I consider her one of my most valued friends. She works with teens and kids. She has taught me how to be authentic and firm with that age group. She’s taught me much about boundaries and balance. She is one of my greatest supporters and one of the few people I have trusted with my life. I wouldn’t be here without her. She’s made me a better person and therapist.
My dad – He’s the best basketball coach I’ve ever played for and coached alongside. He has the strategy down – but more so, he builds a culture and family atmosphere. He is the one who has really shown me that you can take something as simple & silly as a game and apply it to have lifelong value. We teach kids how to play together and put a ball through a hoop – but more than that, we build love and support in our program. We let kids be kids. We support them through something we all love. He’s helped me embrace achieving beautiful things through unconventional means. I’m forever grateful for that man.
Spider-Man – I know this one’s a bit wild, but it also isn’t. I didn’t grow up with comics – but I did grow up with Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s on-screen Spider-Men. Most importantly, I grew up with Alfred Molina’s Doc Ock. The iconic quote is iconic for a reason… “With great power there must also come great responsibility.” That short statement highlighted a need for high moral accountability and a hunger to always pursue what is right. It drove many of my decisions until I grew to understand ethics from a less superhero-y framework. Similarly, Doc Ock states: “Intelligence is not a privilege. It’s a gift. And you use it for the good of mankind.” I was 8 years old when I heard this for the time – even then, I embraced that powerful phrase. Intelligence should not be something taken for granted or abused for personal gain. Ever. The goal is to always make the world a better place. There truly is a hero in all of us – Spider-Man has always championied that to its fullest potential.
I am proudly a first-generation college graduate. I am of Hispanic and Asian descent. I grew up in New Mexico – Hatch Green Chile used to flow through my veins. I do speak Intermediate Spanish – I’m working on it. I can understand Spanish easily though if someone speaks it to me or sends me written messages – I just may answer in Spanglish or English. Forgive me. 🙂 I am also from a military family and grew up incredibly religious. Although, I am not so religious now – I have a profound respect for different spiritual journeys that people venture into and commit to. I did go to Bible school for a bit and am able to engage in much deeper theological conversations than most in the protestant realm. I also minored in Philosophy & Ethics in undergrad. as well – bring on the existential conversations. 🙂
Young people and teenagers are dear to my heart. I coach freshmen boys and enjoy that life stage. It’s nice to support kids in preparing for many major life transitions. Beyond that, I do love working with people of color, trauma survivors, athletes, and individuals with mood disorders.
My basketball team. In addition to my friends and family, I can always count on basketball season bringing me a wonderful experience. Currently, I coach high school boys and it has quickly become one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done in my life. Sometimes they don’t wear enough deodorant… sometimes they don’t listen… sometimes they are sassy… sometimes they give me a headache… sometimes we lose games,,,, but they are delightful kids. We win on and off the court. They are worth the occasional hair pulling and grey hair – mentoring them to be great is one of my favorite things in the world to do. I will keep coaching for as long as I can. Plus, we just won our league championship this past season – that always feels pretty great too. 🙂 The mountaintops make all the valleys & trenches worth it.
A bunch of seemingly disconnected things, including: counseling & psychology theories and techniques, film (screen writing specifically is fun – I’m new to appreciating cinema altogether), moral & political philosophies, theology (protestant heavy), world religions, basketball strategies, weight lifting techniques, etc. I am a generally curious person – I love to think. I hyperfixate on topics I discover I know little about from getting questions wrong from Jeopardy shows (that show will humble the best of us).
A thing I’ve come to love is the community involved with certain fandoms and niche interests within pop culture. In such a wildly divided time and immense world, I love that something as simple as Stranger Things can encapsulate many and bring them together. I love when people share their theories & criticisms, their fan art, their cool collectibles, etc. It’s beautiful to love something with much of yourself (even if not everyone else understands that – a rare few always do). The Duffer Brothers and Shawn Levy better make sure that Season 5 is good… this wait has been crazy. Vecna is pretty cool – they better not fumble this…. Notably, I also am incredibly fond of how media and pop culture can be effectively used to channel emotions. I struggled to feel things in real time for most of my life – I’d shove everything down as quickly as possible. Yes, there is a danger of using media as escapism to avoid problems — but, there is also the potential to connect with what you’re watching in a way that helps clarify what you’re going through and better process the affiliated emotions. There’s power in using fictional stories to improve your reality.
Educational & Professional Background:
Miscellaneous Non-Therapy Background:
become a supervisor, program director, and/or professor – essentially, I’d like to be the mentor of mentors some day. Imagine being the “mentor” final boss? How cool right?! I love mentorship. It served me so well throughout my whole life – in basketball, academics, therapy, and coaching. There is irreplaceable value in sharing your experiences and wisdom with another person who’d like to follow in your footsteps. I love teaching others, but I also love learning from those I teach AND those that continue to teach me. It’s a beautiful partnership. It’s wonderful to help someone discover more of who they are, what they want, why they want it, and how to get there. The end goal is great – but the journey is where I find myself most proud of continuously. It’s lovely to look back at how far people have grown, whilst also looking forward to all the potential they have yet to fully attain.
How much time do you have? insert skull emoji here lol It’s a great field. It does great work, but not without some areas of growth. I’d love to see more black and brown professionals. I’d love to see more male therapists. I’d love to hear of more bilingual and multilingual therapists – there is a huge need there! I hope to hear of more therapists being unafraid to be a little unconventional. I want them to remain ethical, supportive, and loving of course – but also be willing to mix it up; always learning and adapting to best serve their clientele. I want more video games and basketball in therapy. I want more culturally inclusive and responsive therapists. I want more approachability. I want greater sustainability in the field – helping clinicians prevent burnout and enjoy what they are doing long term. On a more specific note, I would love more therapists trained and willing to work with individuals with mood disorders. I love that population of people so dearly. They are gravely misunderstood and underserved.
in a multitude of ways with my greatest emphasis being on normalizing and prioritizing. I do so in the following ways:
I speak on mental health any chance that I get (no matter what the setting; if appropriate, I will never shy away from the topic); social media advocacy (I am not a keyboard warrior who fights people on the internet for no reason, but I will take the time to kindly provide some general information on mental health if it is relevant); teaching basic emotional regulation skills to my high school players; donating to mental health organizations when I can; wearing shirts with mental health statements on them; etc.
Additionally, in college, I wrote for a website that promoted mental health regularly.
“With 10% luck, 20% skill, 15% concentrated power of will”… just kidding, I had to. Shoutout to Fort Minor, ‘Remember the Name’ was on my pregame basketball playlist as a high school kid.
First sessions honestly barely count as regular “sessions” to me. I do my best to make them feel welcoming and as minimally clinical as possible (which is difficult when I’m asking for a snapshot of your life). These sessions give “first date,” “first day of school,” AND “first doctor’s appointment” energy all at the same time. I don’t know how lol. It’s a little weird to navigate, but I am here to navigate with you.
I will admit therapy is so much different than many other things in this world. I make sure to acknowledge that and be genuine always. Clients feel anxious (reasonably) in first sessions and I usually do at a mild level too. It’s always that way when you meet someone new in any setting. In that first meeting with clients, I do my best to gather a thorough history (to make sure we have a good idea of where to start thereafter), answer any questions, address any concerns, establish a preliminary treatment plan, and help you identify if I am the best fit for you.
Email is my favorite – I’m pretty quick at responding through there; plus, it helps myself and my clients practice boundaries more effectively. I do prefer to have a work line open for phone calls when able – I usually do not answer these calls often as I am in session; however, I encourage people to leave voicemails to help me identify urgency. I put some hustle in listening to the voicemails and will respond by calling back and/or sending an email. I do not text my clients – I am young-ish and am already always on my phone. I need not increase my screen time – I already fight that with Tik Tok.
Weekly and biweekly. I do sometimes offer monthly sessions – but that is case by case and often far more rare. Because I often work with grief & trauma, I recommend increased consistency of sessions. At the end of our first session, I will determine with you if weekly or biweekly is most proper.
I know scheduling can be complex at times and try to honor that. I usually ask new clients to see me weekly for at least 3-4 sessions to ensure stability – thereafter, we can discuss switching to biweekly. I accommodate where reasonable. Consistency in therapy is essential in the beginning and long-term for certain presenting concerns.
RavenClaw, Erudite, Hunger Games over Twilight, Marvel, PS5 over Xbox, Golden State Warriors, Miles Morales over Peter Parker, Scarlet Witch is the Strongest Avenger, New York Liberty, South Carolina Women’s Basketball, Duke Men’s Basketball, QDoba over Chipotle, New Mexico Green Chile over Colorado Green Chile, Sunsets over Sunrises, Coffee over Tea, Fall is the Best Season, The Last of Us is the Best Video Game Adaptation, Greta Gerwig is the Best Director in the 2020s; Halloween is the Superior Holiday
INTJ – Architect; Enneagram 3 wing 2; Zodiac: Leo.
Undersized small forward; hustler; executes plays; perfected 15-footer; coachable; solid teammate.
