LGBT therapists in Independence, MO

Could you benefit from having a realistic, relaxed therapist who can help you achieve your goals to live your life to the fullest? Nice to meet you! I am an LCSW in the state of Missouri and I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together.

Sometimes life changes in ways you never expected. Whether you're navigating anxiety, depression, grief, trauma, the transition into parenthood, or the emotional demands of caring for others, it's easy to lose sight of yourself while trying to keep everything together. You don't have to face those challenges alone. For more than 20 years, I've partnered with individuals experiencing anxiety, depression, grief and loss, women's issues, and trauma, helping them build resilience, strengthen relationships, and rediscover hope during life's most difficult seasons. Working with children, adolescents, and adults, I strive to create a compassionate, supportive space where you feel genuinely heard, respected, and empowered to move toward lasting healing.

Therapy to restore pleasure and emotional safety after sexual assault and other trauma for adults and their partners. I specialize in three areas: sex & intimacy, trauma & emotional regulation, and anxiety disorders such as OCD and BPD. I have extensive experience supporting individuals and partners experiencing intimacy challenges related to desire discrepancy, neurodivergence, and partners hoping to rebuild healthy sexual relationships. I strive to provide care in a space that deeply honors identity and lived experience.

I’m an affirming, open-minded therapist who works with adults navigating trauma, anxiety, depression, panic, stress, relationship challenges, identity concerns, and major life changes. I also support clients dealing with maternal mental health concerns, including the emotional weight that can come with pregnancy, postpartum changes, infertility, and adjusting to a new season of life.

Since earning my master’s in 2021, I have worked in mental health with both children and adults in settings including crisis care, which has deepened my understanding of how overwhelming life can feel when symptoms start affecting your relationships, confidence, and daily routine. My goal is to offer a space that feels warm, approachable, compassionate, and real.

I came to train and serve as a counselor after being helped by counseling in my 40s. Sometimes reaching out for help and making changes in life is scary and overwhelming. Sometimes we need support as we navigate these changes. I love to support my clients as they make life-giving changes.

Hello!

I proudly bring lived experience to the table, so I know a different life than comes in textbooks. It increases my odds of understanding you better and of being able to develop unique strategies for you in a shorter amount of time. I've wanted to work in mental health since I was a child, and bring that enthusiasm to my work. Hope to see you soon.

I am curious and validating, providing a nurturing environment to talk openly and honestly about your struggles, strengths, weaknesses, needs, likes, and dislikes. I love helping people explore their unique and particular powers as well as how these powers impact their world and their relationships. As a passionate supporter of those who have been through unjust or otherwise traumatic experiences--including those experiencing discrimination based upon race or gender identity or sexual orientation--I am particularly interested in helping people gain skills for dealing with, and making sense of, the remnants of their pasts.

Having completed Bessel Van der Kolk's Trauma Research Foundation's Certificate in Traumatic Stress Studies in early 2025, I have a strong foundational understanding of the most cutting edge approaches to treating trauma. I am also comfortable using a combination of approaches, including Psychodynamic, Gestalt, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. I received an MSW from the University of Pennsylvania, a psychodynamically focused program, after which I completed Bryn Mawr's certificate program in psychodynamic psychotherapy. I have also completed 1 year of Gestalt Therapy training and the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Immersion Program.

As an LCSW, my training emphasized the role of social environment--from the family to society at large--in how we construct our narratives, enabling me to help you make sense of what in your life is yours to own and what is a product of your environment.