I obtained my Masters in
Education Counseling and saw clients at the Family Service Center. While
I worked with a variety of clients, I focused mostly on sexually abused
children and their families. Following this, I became a full-time mommy
for seven years. I was blessed to stay home with my kids and focus on
their growth – and mine.
I had my own private
practice at Heritage Behavioral Health Consultants. At Heritage I worked
with children, individuals, and couples who were going through a “tough period”
in their life, experiencing a crisis, or a life situation that had hurt their
ability to lead a happy and fulfilling life. I worked with anxiety
disorders, ADD, ADHD, PTSD, eating disorders, depression, marriage counseling and
anger management. In addition, to the clinical work, I was involved in a
Divorce Recovery Program.
Since I speak both
English and Spanish, I have been able to work with a wider range of
people. I worked with group of ladies that had been brought from Mexico
with the promise of jobs and freedom but instead found themselves used as “sex
slaves”. I also spent time working in
a Chronic Pain Clinic, many clients
struggling with PTSD. Among the many issues we addressed were chronic pain,
depression, anxiety and anger management.
My most recent work
experience was at Integra Behavioral Healthcare Center where I provided
counseling to young children, adolescents, older teenagers and their
families. In many cases, I worked with the parents and did individual,
couples, or family therapy. The majority of my clients were diagnosed
with ADD, ADHD, bipolar, depression, anxiety, physical and/or sexual abuse, and
sexual identity crisis. In this practice, I also worked individually with
adults confronted with marital, parenting, depression, and sexual/physical
issues. My multi-cultural upbringing, and my ability to speak Spanish and
English fluently, was often helpful in my treatment of families where the
parents spoke only Spanish and the children spoke mostly English. It was
also helpful in working with couples dealing with multi-cultural issues.