How I Work: I am an NIH-trained Clinical Health Psychologist in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area with expertise in teens, adults, and couples navigating the complex challenges of chronic and acute illness, pain, and caregiving. I am the Supervising Psychologist and Director at the National Center for Health Psychology and for the last 10 years, I have worked exclusively with individuals (and caregivers/spouses) across all stages of cancer, diseases & illnesses (such as MS, ALS, POTS, Crohn's, EDS, Dysautonomia), and chronic pain syndromes. I am deeply committed to helping my clients and their loved ones reclaim a sense of purpose in their lives. I have been practicing mindfulness and related practices my entire life and have applied acceptance- and mindfulness-based approaches clinically for the past ten years in a variety of settings including schools, outpatient, partial & inpatient hospitalizations, university counseling centers, and academic medical centers. My therapeutic approach mixes ancient eastern practices with modern day, empirically-validated contextual-behavioral treatments (acceptance and commitment therapy, compassion-focused therapy, mindfulness-based stress reduction). In therapy, I use a person-centered, collaborative approach to explore meaningfulness and vitality. And, through courage and compassion, we work ACTively with the barriers and immense challenges that get in the way of living the life you want. Most importantly, I use humor and playfulness to break the hold our thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations have on our experience. I can be reached directly at admin@nchpsych.com.

About Me: I spent my early career as a research psychologist at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) / National Cancer Institute (NCI). As faculty at NIH, my team received $500K in funding on various protocols to study the longitudinal effects of disease and treatment in folks with cancer, cancer pre-disposition syndromes, and other chronic health conditions (pain, insomnia, etc.). I continue to have a secondary appointment as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychology at George Washington University (GWU) and be connected with my NIH lab as research psychologist - special volunteer status. I currently serve on the Board of Directors for several international scientific organizations including President for both the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS) Mid-Atlantic Chapter and ACBS Cancer Special Interest Group. I also currently serve on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science (JCBS). In addition to my clinical work, I am Founder of a Washington, DC-based consulting firm - where I (and my awesome team) train practitioners in ACT and advise on international scientific research protocols. In my free time, I climb some of the world’s tallest mountains.