About

My name is Patty and I'm Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over ten years of experience helping adults with depression and anxiety. My practice philosophy is strongly rooted in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a mindfulness based Cognitive and Behavioral Therapy with a strong evidence base, that helps you take an unconventional look at mental suffering. What if pain is a normal, unavoidable part of the being human, but avoiding or trying to control painful experience is the cause of suffering and long-term problems? With ACT, we engage in a therapy process that centers on the difference between pain and suffering and teaches you to let go of your struggle against pain, access your values, and then commit to acting in ways that further those values. This work is not about fighting your pain, "battling" depression or anxiety, but about developing a willingness to embrace every experience life has to offer. It's not about resisting your emotions or developing new techniques or strategies to "manage" them, it's about feeling them completely and yet not turning your choices over to them. How does this look in therapy? I'd love to show you. I know it takes courage to reach out and get help, and you may have already done so at other times in your life and still find that you are feeling “stuck” or trapped in a cycle of thoughts, feelings and behaviors. If you are ready to adopt a new perspective on your problems, your life and the way you live it, consider working with me. I will consider it an honor.