I’m a clinical psychologist who specializes in working with children who have experienced trauma. I offer outpatient evidence-based therapy such as trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy, parent-child interaction therapy and combined parent-child cognitive behavioral therapy. I also help children and families in the CHECK/Foster Care Center, where I do consultations, preventive visits, and individual and family therapy for those who are involved in the child welfare system.
I’ve known I wanted to work with children since high school, when I heard a child psychologist speak at a career day event. Along the way I have been trained by prestigious child psychologists, including Barbara Boat, a local trauma psychologist, and Esther Deblinger, one of the creators of trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy. These experts inspired me to work with children who have had traumatic experiences because they are underserved, and because there are excellent evidence-based treatments that can help them.
I like to work as a team with the child’s caregivers. They are the experts on their child, and I am the expert in trauma therapy. Together we can help their child heal from past experiences. I am also sensitive to each family’s culture in my work.
In 2019, I was honored by my colleagues in the Cincinnati Children’s Division of Behavioral Medicine and Clinical Psychology with the Ann Moser Care and Compassion Award.
Outside the hospital, I spend most of my free time with my twin girls – teaching and playing with them. I come from a close family, so I also enjoy being with them as much as possible. Travel is one of my favorite hobbies. I’ve been to 13 countries, with Italy and France being my two favorites.