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For 6 years I worked in hospitals with Bariatrics (Obesity) & Eating Disorders programs and Emergency Room trauma victims. I provided counseling and support for the police officers, physicians, nurses, social workers, etc. working in and with the ER. I also taught community outreach classes and did group and individual therapy for hospital outpatients, especially in the areas of obesity/eating disorders, stress-related psychophysiological disorders, sexual abuse/assault, domestic violence and child abuse.
In my 15 years of private practice, I have worked with hundreds of people in crisis, including that of abuse, sexual assault, divorce, life style changes, unemployment and/or career changes, accidents and illnesses, chemical dependency, eating disorders, obesity, depression, attempted suicide, etc. I have done individual, couple, family, and group counseling and therapy, and enjoy working with all ages of children, adolescents, and adults. I love working with exceptional individuals like musicians & artists, child prodigies and the multi-gifted, and individuals with numerous, complex problems such as Multiple Personality Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, Savant Syndrome, and the Multiply-Diagnosed. I especially enjoy providing Creative Problem Solving, counseling, education and spiritual support for professional helpers & healers like teachers, physicians, nurses, therapists, social workers, clergy, police, & rescue workers.
I’ve conducted hundreds of classes, workshops and seminars for schools, hospitals, churches, organizations and businesses in the following areas of expertise and interest. Actually, passion would be a better word, because I really love teaching!
I have created, written, edited, consulted on, and performed in all types of media productions - radio, television, print, audio & video recording, live theater, and the Internet – and many of my published works are on this website. One of my projects involved turning my doctoral dissertation on wholistic healing (Spirit, mind, body, & environment) for people in crisis into a “user-friendly” 200-page handbook. Since September 11th, 2001, this book has been used to train and support professional helpers/healers/rescuers and volunteers in grief counseling, crisis intervention, and traumatic stress disorders, and to set up wholistic healing centers in churches and other spiritual organizations.
My current work involves research and writing; teaching helping/healing professionals; Creative Problem Solving groups, workshops and consulting; and my interfaith teaching, healing and music ministry. I enjoy Ergonomics and consulting with businesses on the development and improvement of products for women, children and people with disabilities. And always, I work for Human Empowerment, Socioeconomic Stability, and World Peace!
I believe deeply in the dignity, inherent worth, and creative potential of every individual and that each person has the ability and responsibility to give something of value to society. I believe in the Divine uniqueness of each human being, so therefore utilize many different counseling and teaching theories and techniques depending on the needs and personality of the individual client(s) or dynamics of the group. My therapeutic training/skills include Hakomi Therapy, Jungian Therapy, Adlerian Therapy, Gestalt Therapy, Ellis' Rational Emotive Therapy, Transactional Analysis, Rogerian Therapy, Reality Therapy (Dreikers and Glasser), Frankl's Logotherapy, Behavior Modification, Virginia Satir's Family Therapy, Psychodrama, Aromatherapy, and Homeopathy. My special love of nature and the arts enables me to utilize music, art, drama, literature, and recreational therapy whenever appropriate. With young children, I use primarily play therapy (utilizing dolls, toys, puppets, etc.) art & music therapy, and psychodrama. My experience and logic convince me that different techniques work with different people, and there are no simplistic answers when dealing with human beings.
Since I constantly research the effects of nutrition, exercise, sleep, drugs, allergies, illness, injuries, and other physiological or biochemical processes on mental health and learning, I always work with my patients'/clients' physical abilities, limitations, health and habits. I work closely with their physicians, therapists, teachers and other helping professionals to provide consistent, wholistic care.
I know the value of Career Counseling/Education and the importance of helping people explore their personalities, values, and desired lifestyles as well as their interests & abilities. It is essential to help them explore career options, plan for their future and realize their potential. I encourage clients to choose not one, but three career areas. With a changing society and an unstable economy, any career can become obsolete, economically impractical, or physically unattainable. By choosing three possibilities and learning back-up skills, they are better prepared for the future.
I believe a sense of humor is essential for happiness. I often use jokes, anecdotes and cartoons to help my clients and students understand a concept or to ease tension at organizational meetings.
My studies of philosophy and religion have taught me the importance of balance in life and nature, and that anything carried to the extreme produces negative results. Helping clients and colleagues balance their lives often alleviates many of their problems and prevents even more. I also believe in the individual's inherent connection with the universe and try to help my clients to understand the reasons for the problems in their lives and to turn those problems into learning experiences and assets; to "turn lemons into lemonaid".
At the heart of my philosophy is learning. In THE LEGEND OF KING ARTHUR, Merlin the Magician states, "The best thing for being sad is to learn something. That is the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies; you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins; you may miss your only love; you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics or your honor trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then -- to learn! That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the thing for you."
I believe creativity is essential for personal well-being as well as social reform, and that each individual has the ability and responsibility to create new and better ways of doing things and making our world a better place in which to live. My goal is to help those with whom I work connect their creative potential to the Unlimited Creativity of the Universe and direct it for the betterment of themselves and others. I am fulfilled when those with whom I work are able to say and believe about themselves, "The world is a better place because of me; I did something that would not have been done were it not for me; I created something that would not exist were it not for me. I HAVE VALUE!"
In summary, my purpose is to help individuals become their best selves and to lead joyful, productive, fulfilling lives. I utilize my therapeutic experience to enable my students to emotionally assimilate the material they are learning, and my teaching experience to give my patients and clients the knowledge and skills necessary to deal with many of their problems and to eventually function autonomously. My multidimensional, wholistic approach that considers the client's physical, financial, emotional, social, psychological, and philosophical/spiritual needs utilizes a variety of techniques from the theoretical to the practical. PLUS, I really LOVE my work!!!
For more information and soul sustenance:
A list of my classes, workshops and seminars.
A few of my original poems & short essays.
More about exceptional/extraordinary individuals.
Psychology humor.
Back to my home page.
