About

I have experience in clinical counseling for over 40 years in private practice and in hospitals. During the last 20 years, I worked in multiple hospital outpatient clinics all part of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation where I treated patients with Pain Management issues, anger management, depression, anxiety, abuse, domestic violence, opiate dependence/addiction, alcohol dependency, family systems, and stressors that affect life changes and other situations that cause disequilibrium. I specialized in Pain Management and emotions, working with individuals experiencing chronic pain and how it affects their lives and the lives of their families. This includes possible role changes in the family system. I was also the Behavioral Medicine faculty for the Family Medicine Residency Program where I taught physicians how to identify and treat psychological issues. I focused on teaching them how to take sexual histories and identify abuse with the appropriate referrals for safe space when needed. I facilitated groups of physicians, nurses, social workers, and other care givers who met periodically to discuss difficult patients and families and how to increase communication while focusing on the caretaking of the identified patient. Another goal of this group was to identify and manage professional burnout. My approach is Functional, working with the client/patient in the present, helping to identify, explore possible sources of the conflict(s), and learn techniques to manage the felt difficulties. I also use Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Mindfulness. I provide a comfortable environment, an appropriate sense of humor with empathy and an opportunity for the client to express feelings/concerns in a safe and confidential setting. My success in providing treatment has been affording patients/clients the opportunity to be confronted respectfully with painful issues in order to allow them to work through the distress with the goal of empowerment to reach healthy functioning.