The Growing Place Youth Counseling​

Education and Certifications​

M.Ed. Counseling Psychology 1999, Heritage University

B.A. Social Sciences 1996, Washington State University

Lisenced Mental Health Counselor- Washington

Educational Staff Associate Counselor- Washington

Certified Autism Specialist- IBCCES

SB-Registered Play Therapist- APT

Member of APT- Association for Play Therapy

Board Member and Program Leader NAMI- National Alliance on Mental Illness

 

 

A bit about me...

 

I began my career as a counselor in a children's hospital setting.  After obtaining my Master's degree, I was an elementary school counselor for 19 years.  In 2019, I opened The Growing Place Youth Counseling to specialize in working with children in our community.

 

In my work, I have interacted with hundreds of families, parents, children, adolescents, and adults.  This has provided me with a deep understanding of trauma, divorce and blended families, grief and loss, mental health conditions, school issues, child and adolescent behavioral problems, and parenting stress.

 

My specialty in Autism Spectrum Disorders comes from the many years I have worked with children and their parents who were looking for answers to the difficulties their children were having in school and at home. I have attended hundreds of hours of autism specific training and in 2017 became a Certified Autism Specialist with IBCCES.