helping others break down barriers (no neon capes necessary)
Compassionate and engaged on another level
“When we deny our stories, they define us. When we own our stories, we get to write the ending.” – Brene Brown
Holding space for the parts of you that were lost, the parts that are still trembling, and the parts that are beginning to remember they are whole.
A session with me is part structure, and part guided by the mysteries of the week. We might start with a breath – just enough to land – and then check in on what’s showing up for you: thoughts, feelings, patterns, the knot in your chest that won’t quite go away. I draw from CBT and DBT, so there are some tools and practical skills, and there is also space for exploration. Some days we might challenge a belief, and some days we might hold it with compassion. My job is to walk beside you with honesty and curiosity and also help guide you on your journey.
Therapy, to me, is like a time-traveling journey. It’s a journey where I ride along as a passenger to join you in the moments of your life (which may be turbulent or wonderful, or both). We may explore the past, present, and even the future together. It’s a place where we can explore your stories, beliefs, and nervous system. It’s a dance of insight and vulnerability. What matters most to me is connection – to yourself, to your emotions, to another human being. In therapy, connection means being seen, really truly seen, in a space where you feel open enough to show the chaotic and sometimes messy parts of your life. And you know that I am there to sit with you.
Establishing and tracking goals is a process that we will do together. There will be an upfront assessment, and during that time I will also ask about why you are in therapy and what you hope to gain out of our sessions together. I let you (the client) help lead the process of your goal development. And, this is not a stagnant process. If at any point you or I feel like we are going in a different direction or there is something more pertinent to focus on, then we can adapt the goals to your needs. Goals are tracked continuously throughout our time together and I will revisit goals with you and ask how close you feel to these goals and discuss small steps to get even closer, and may be able to help provide some insights into growth I’ve seen in sessions with you.
The complex ways trauma impacts people (especially those with intersecting marginalized identities) – not just in how it derails mental health, but in how it invites healing. Having worked in residential treatment with youth, in nonprofit settings, in child welfare, and now as a therapist, I’ve witnessed many instances of grief and resilience. These experiences have taught me that healing isn’t one-size-fits-all. My work has given me a front-row seat to the kind of courage it takes to keep going, and it’s a perspective I carry with humility and deep respect
I specialize in treating anxiety, depression, complex trauma, and the emotional impact of chronic illness (among other areas). My work is grounded in a trauma-informed, relational approach that honors both the science of healing and the deeply human experience of existence. I also have a long history working with children, youth, young adults, and adults involved in or formerly involved in the child welfare system, and the many complexities of impact that come with that journey.
My identity and background deeply inform how I show up in this work – not as an expert looking down from a distance, but as someone who understands what it means to live in a body and in a world where complexity is the norm. As a woman, a member of the LGBTQ+ community, and someone who lives with a chronic illness, I carry an embodied understanding of what it means to navigate systems that don’t always make space for your full humanity. These experiences have shaped a therapeutic lens that’s rooted in compassion, curiosity, and a little bit of sarcastic medical humor (when appropriate).
Compassionate
Good listener
Someone who is “on my side”
Approachable
Funny
Supportive
Intense
Passionate
Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won’t either, for the solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself that you tasted as much as you could. – Louise Erdrich (The Painted Drum)
grounded in attunement and trust. I work to create a space where you feel safe, respected, and fully seen. At the same time, I gently challenge patterns, beliefs, or ways of coping that may no longer be serving you. This balance isn’t about pushing for change, but about inviting it with shared curiosity, compassion, and a deep belief in your capacity to grow.
My strength. My whole life I was told that “Meghan means strong,” and it became so embedded as a mantra I forgot that strength doesn’t always mean muscles or silence. Strength can be something you have to have because you have no other options. When I say I am strengths-focused this does not mean we will only look at the positive things and ignore the rest, it means I may see your vulnerability as strength, your friendships as strength, or your ability to just exist and sit in hard emotions as strength. If my strength lens had a shape, it would be a heart, because it’s not only the strongest muscle, but also the one we relate to feeling the most.
Stories are what make us human. Understanding individual stories, childhood stories, and life stories and where they intersect with our core beliefs system about who we are, helps guide my process in working with people. I believe that the stories we invent, the stories we tell ourselves, and the stories we want to hear shape our reality and how we interact with others. And we can’t always delete or edit the old chapters, but we can learn from them, heal, and shape the stories we are living now (and potential future stories).
Tell you at least one lame joke
Ask you about your emotions and how they are showing up in your body
Ensure you have water and snacks and breaks ready when you need them
Sit with you in awkward silence
Sit with you in needed silence
Be there for the stressful and/or hard times
Help you celebrate the wins (even the snail-sized wins)
Create a space for connection
Recommend a book or tv show
Discuss vulnerability and shame
The privilege of witnessing people’s capacity to heal. It’s not even necessarily perfect or large dramatic transformations that inspire me, but the brave quiet moments of self-connection and reflection. I learn so much from my clients and their journeys and I want to help guide them to the best of my ability and to the changing world around us. I, too, must be in a continuous cycle of knowledge and growth. I seek out continued learning in trauma, neurobiology, and social justice because I believe work in this world requires both heart and grit, and I want to keep showing up with both.
Some of my main influences in therapeutic work are Brené Brown, Dan Siegel, and Tom Robbins – an unexpected trio that, together, shape the heart and texture of how I show up with clients. From Brené Brown, I’ve learned the power of vulnerability, courage, and creating spaces where people feel deeply seen. Dan Siegel’s work grounds me in the science of integration, attachment, and nervous system regulation, reminding me that healing is not just emotional, but also physiological. And Tom Robbins, while not a therapist, reminds me not to take the human condition too seriously, and that there’s wisdom in irreverence, meaning in the absurd, and that humor and wonder can belong in the therapy room, too.
“We are our own dragons as well as our own heroes, and we have to rescue ourselves from ourselves.” ― Tom Robbins, Still Life with Woodpecker
“We must keep in mind that only a part of memory can be translated into the language-based packets of information people use to tell their life stories to others. Learning to be open to many layers of communication is a fundamental part of getting to know another person’s life.” – Daniel J. Siegel
I used to be a dirt bike instructor and could teach you how to ride a motorcycle.
Outer Space Facts: I love the idea that while you are reading this there are people dressed in space suits exploring areas outside of the earth. And, yes, I like (old school) Star Trek!
Brain Facts: The brain and body are just as interesting to me as outer space, but they have an entire inner space we are still learning and exploring.
How Language Impacts Growth: I have a Bachelor’s degree in English, and I love reading and writing, and I feel like there is always more to learn. I am curious about how words impact our identity, our growth, and our cultural experiences as humans.
Kayaking
Bike riding (with pedal assist)
Walking and talking
Watching movies (My favorite movie of all time is The Fifth Element)
Thinking about metacognitive thinking
Writing (journaling, fiction writing (flash fiction and short stories), grant writing, and I dabble in some poetry)
Slam poetry (I love a good slam poem being delivered with the right amount of emotion and giving you goosebumps as you listen). Not sure what slam poetry is? I recommended listening to Andrea/Andrew Gibson (Colorado’s Poet Laureate)
