Who I Help

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I'm a LGBTQIA+ and relationship affirming therapist who loves working with adolescents ages 11 and up, as well as adults (ages 18+). I love working with clients experiencing concerns related to being part of the LGBTQIA+ community, gender and sexuality, neurodivergence, anxiety, depression, grief and loss, religious trauma, self-esteem, bipolar disorder, and stress.

 

I also provide relationship therapy services, and I am affirming of both non-traditional relationship structures (i.e. ENM, polyamory) and kink/fetish. I have personal lived experiences as a cis gay man in ethically non-monogamous relationships.

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I love what I do because I am passionate about self-discovery, exploration and healing. I find fulfillment in offering support to those who may feel lost or alone, or who have faced challenges due to their sexuality and/or gender identity.

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Music Therapy

Music Therapy is the use of music and music-related strategies within a therapeutic relationship to assist or motivate, and improve one’s emotional, physical, physiological, and spiritual health and well-being. Every Music Therapist has their own way of navigating through the therapy process. In my practice, I personally like to use song discussion, lyric analysis, song writing, music assisted relaxation and musical recreation to help process through and ignite change. We can use a series of live and/or pre-recorded music to engage in the therapeutic experiences. You do not have to be a musician or to have any knowledge of music to benefit from Music Therapy.

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LGBTQIA+ Community

As a gay cis-male, I have had my own experience with identity confusion, discrimination, bullying, and religious trauma. Growing up, I never had anyone to look up to or to answer my never ending list of questions regarding who I was and what to expect from being part of the LGBTQIA+ community.

 

I want to be that beacon of hope for those who feel lost, confused, and/or alone. Over the past few years, I have worked with individuals within the community, helping them to come to terms with their identity, express themselves authentically, come out to their loved ones, and process through their lived experiences. I have also assisted clients with the transition process, which can be both an exciting and complex, multilayered process.

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Neurodivergence

Let's be honest--we live in a world that caters to the neurotypical, expecting those who are not neurotypical to adapt to everything. I have been working with neurodivergent individuals since the beginning of my career. I do not claim to be an expert on all things neurodivergence, but I have a huge passion for helping individuals within this population. I love working with folks to develop coping strategies, relaxation skills, and sensory techniques in order to navigate this complex "neurotypical normative" world of ours.

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What Can You Expect?

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I am a Board-Certified Music Therapist and a Licensed Professional Counselor. I use music as a resource to help process through various clinical needs. (Music not your thing? That’s okay!) I also provide traditional talk therapy that is highly informed by the Gestalt theory of counseling. I also tend to pull from the Person-Centered and CBT counseling theories.

 

We all desire to be loved, to be accepted, and to find our place in the world, but that first requires a journey of both knowing and loving yourself. As Lucille Ball once said:

“Love yourself first and everything else falls into line. You really have to love yourself to get anything done in this world." 

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I approach therapy with 100% authenticity, transparency, open-mindedness, honesty and yes, of course…humor. With your permission, I often pull from both my own personal and professional experience to help you become your true authentic self and achieve “wholeness"--whatever that looks like for you.

 

Using a Gestalt approach, I'll help you become aware of what you may be missing in your life that is keeping you from becoming “whole.” Within the Gestalt approach, there are various ways to work towards this, and together we will decide what may work best for you. Change can be scary, and at times uncomfortable. But once you make it to the other side, you will be glad that you had the bravery and the courage to step outside of your comfort zone and make those changes.

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"Every part of you matters. The world is better when you are your authentic self, bold, beautiful, radiant and on full display. I see every shade of you and I couldn't love you more."

-Teju Abiola

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 When I'm not at Open Space CCW, you may also find me...

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Playing Euphonium in the Westmoreland Symphonic Winds at Seton Hill University, completing a paint by numbers with my fur children by my side or exercising….well, thinking about exercising at least (haha!). You may also find me living my best life by putting on a concert for my fur children and my partner by singing and impressing them with my stellar dance moves. I enjoy being a little weird, and to quote one of my favorite actresses, Debbie Reynolds:

"Being Normal Is Vastly Overrated!”

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