EDUCATION and EXPERIENCE
As a married mother of two, I enrolled in college and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and Family Studies from Central Michigan University.
Next, I earned a Clinical Master of Social Work degree from Michigan State University.
I am licensed by the State of Michigan as a LMSW.
I have been part of and worked with blended families for approximately 40 years. I have eight biological siblings and have had five step-siblings over the course of my life. With such a large and varied family, there are not many family situations I have not encountered.
For several years, I worked in the public school system as a paraprofessional and a substitute teacher. Most of this experience was in a K-2nd school.
More recently, I worked in a nursing home/short-term rehab center providing social services to the patients and families.
As an intern, I worked for a year in a Partial Psychiatric Hospitalization program. This is an out-patient day program for persons requiring more intensive treatment than traditional counseling.
My education combined with my work and personal experiences make it possible for me to help people of all ages who are dealing with a variety of issues.
I have taken extra courses to earn certificates in:
Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Traumatic Brain Injury
Hospice- End of Life Communication
PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIP & COMMUNITY WORK
NASW-National Association of Social Workers
PHILOSOPHY
I believe that each person is unique. Every person has strengths and areas they can learn or grow in. Change is hard, but possible.
I believe that as a person’s thinking changes, so does their behavior. We talk to ourselves more than anyone else, and often what we tell ourselves is very negative. It is easy to believe the negative things told to us by others and ourself. If you hear a lie often enough, it begins to sound like it is truth. Sometimes we all need help sorting out what is true.