You can unclench your jaw, drop your shoulders and let out a long exhale. Therapy is your space to come exactly as you are and how you need to be.

Clients have said I’m warm, supportive, and easy to talk to. I’ll not shy from using humour together to share a deep belly laugh if it’s appropriate. I am about as far away as you can get from any stereotyped notion of an aloof, and blank-faced therapist. That’s not to say I won’t be straight-talking (a nod to my proud, American upbringing). I also won’t sit in your session and take excessive notes staring at a notepad, while saying ‘uh huh’ over and over again while glancing at the clock.

You are always invited to bring a cup of tea to your online session and I’ll encourage you to make yourself as comfortable as possible in your own space (yes, even if it means your snuggly dog is in the room while you also sport your favourite well-worn slippers).

Anything that needs addressing in our sessions won’t be sugar-coated, but I will always speak to you with kindness, compassion and respect. I care deeply for my clients and this will hopefully be apparent as our therapeutic relationship deepens over time in your sessions.

Therapy with me celebrates all the differences that make you unique– whether you identify as Neurodivergent or as part of the LGBTQIA+ community, Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) and 2SLGBTQIA+ intersections (QTBIPOC), Disabled Communities of Colour (or all of the above).

As an inclusive therapist, I celebrate the strengths the needs of people with marginalised identities. My psychotherapy practice boldly strives to be: anti-oppressive, anti-discriminatory, anti-stigma, anti-racist and anti-ableist. However you choose to express and identify yourself in this world, you are welcome here.

My approach is based in Relational Transactional Analysis (TA). What I love about this style of TA is that it offers a user-friendly and pragmatic way to explore, clarify and understand emotional, psychological and behavioural problems and experiences and how they develop. 

One of the core aims of TA psychotherapy is to help people understand how they communicate not only with themselves (both internally and externally)– and their music– but with others, too. We’ll work together to bring unconscious patterns to understand it in a new light. We’ll use our relationship together as the container for this work.

TA therapy is suited both to short-term goal-focussed counselling, and longer-term more exploratory psychotherapy. The goal of both of these is not only understanding but also change.

Key assumptions that underlie the TA philosophy include the following:

• People are Okay.
• Everyone can think on their own.
• People decide their own destiny and these decisions can be changed.

I fundamentally believe that people are innately good and that mental and social problems result from deviations from this natural tendency.

Our work together will aim to facilitate your capacity for fulfilling your innate talents and potential that I believe is present in everyone on this earth. Dealing with the pains and traumas of the past in the ‘here and now’ will enable you to live your life with more freedom, and I hope, more empowerment, joy and pleasure.

Therapy is not something that’s ‘done’ to you, but something we co-create together. 

Your active participation and input are vital parts of our work together. I won’t tell you what to do but I will help you clarify your goals, values and options, so you feel confident in your decisions. You are the expert on your life, and I will always encourage this viewpoint— I don’t pretend to know better than you.

If you haven’t felt valued by other therapists or people in your life, I want you to know I will do my best to always make you feel seen and understood.

Over time and if you’re willing, we will explore your history and how it relates to what you bring to your sessions in your current every day. Nothing happens in isolation. Looking at the big picture — including things like family relationships, generational patterns, and social systems — can lead to valuable insight and understanding.

If you’re interested, we’ll talk about how stressful or overwhelming experiences impact your brain, nervous system, and overall functioning. Many clients have said this helps them better understand their experiences.

Sometimes, when appropriate, I might suggest we include some TA theory,  Gestalt chair exercises, dream interpretation, Family Systems (IFS) work or share relevant neuroscience findings, if appropriate to your therapy goals. I have also been known to suggest guided fantasy/ meditation when words are feeling ‘stuck’. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to treatment planning, and that is something I celebrate.

I might suggest simple ‘homework’ tasks to do over the week outside the therapy room that will complement our sessions, but this is always in discussion with you, and always in your interest. You also might want to ‘leave it all’ in the room, and that’s ok too!

We’ll move at a pace that works for you. Whether you need a soft place to land or help accessing your strength, I’ll meet you where you are and support you there.

Your first appointment will be an intake session. During this session we’ll talk about your history, how you’re doing now, and your goals for therapy. I might ask exploratory questions like:

What brings you here today?

What’s happening for you in your day-to day?

What are your expectations for our work together?

What changes are you willing to make in your life to heal?

(And by the way— its ok to not know the answers before you begin!)

We won’t talk in detail about your past experiences, and you don’t have to share anything you don’t want to and I’ll answer any questions you have.

From there, we’ll make a plan and meet regularly to help you meet your goals.
Sessions usually consist of talking about how things are going and specific exercises to help you get where you want to be.

Through our work together, you’ll experience relief, insight, confidence, and start feeling better.

There is no ‘typical’ musical client that I see. From rappers to virtuosos, to informally-trained musicians who have taught themselves to play folk tunes, to classically-trained orchestral players who are part of established symphonies. From peripatetic music teachers to conservatoire lecturers to musical theatre to world music indie drummers to electroacoustic composers to recording engineers to prog rock managers and opera singers — the diverse range of musicians that I have worked with can’t be limited to any genre, level or style.

Whether you are a performer, educator, composer, music therapist, audio engineer, musicologist, producer, recording artist, singer, conductor, promoter, lyricist, arranger, choreographer, manager, instrument dealer, accompanist (and everything in between), I can’t wait to meet you.

How you feel about your musical creativity, your musical output, your ability to show up to your art, your musical confidence, your musical joy (whether it’s there, or not at all) can reveal so much information about where your mental health is at.

I truly believe that the problems/ blockages you might be struggling with in your music making are more about something much deeper than any music technique that needs fixing, and that’s what I am here to help you explore.

• Anxiety
• Anger management
• Bereavement
• Career burnout
• Childhood trauma – physical, emotional or sexual abuse
• Complex PTSD
• Depression
• Disordered eating
• Disturbed family background
• Fertility
• Gender identity and transition
• Intrusive thoughts
• Loss of job, home or major change in life
• Low self –esteem
• Mid-life crisis
• OCD management
• Panic
• Phobias
• Psychogenic Voice Disorder/Aphonia 
• Relationship changes – marriage, divorce
• Relationship choices – choosing better partners, dating
• Relationship difficulties- loneliness, jealousy, arguments, pre-marriage problems, friendship problems
• Self confidence
• Self-esteem
• Sexual abuse
• Sexual orientation
• Stress
• Social Anxiety
• Stress Management