I was interested in psychology in high school and my mother introduced me to her co-worker who was an art therapist. I rolled my eyes at the idea of art therapy, I only wanted a degree in Clinical Psychology (I was a champion eye roller) Then, I met the art therapist. She showed me some examples of how she used art with people who were recovering from head injuries. I realized I had been using art as therapy as a coping skill for stress my whole life. I showed her my journals and felt she really "got" me. So, my mom had a good idea, I had to admit it. Drawing and doing craft projects helped me get through tough times adjusting to my father's retirement from the Army and subsequent move to rural Oklahoma when I was seven years old. As a therapist, I originally wanted to be there for children who communicate and heal themselves through art. With age and experience my scope of practice has expanded to people of all ages.

I feel like I am a best fit for people with a big imagination. This is partly why I have spent so much time working with children and teens. The imagination is where creative solutions come from. It can be healing and it can also be a source of stress when it goes into dark themes, rumination, nightmares, and dissociation. You see the the imagination go rogue in people with symptoms of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and ADHD.

Clients that are motivated to change and are willing to put in some effort. For example, if you want to lose weight and gain lean body mass and hired a trainer, you would know you have a lot of hours of work ahead of you. Your trainer is there to give you workouts based on your fitness level and goals. They also hold you accountable. Think of therapy as training for better mental health. The therapist is there to listen, empathize, give you new insights and tools. We can't do the work for you, but we will be there for you to see how your homework did (or didn't) go. Just like training, you will go through periods of being highly motivated and times when you want to quit because things got hard. That's a part of the process. You can do this!

You don't have to be artistic at all to do art therapy! I know the word "art" is scary. Many people had bad experiences in art education and are stuck in right/wrong, pretty/ugly, thinking. In art therapy there is no right or wrong. Sometimes it's about allowing your imagination to have a controlled outlet. "I can be out of control...on the paper." It can sometimes help in working through feelings that seem stuck even though your cognitive mind "knows" the truth. These are just a few examples of how art expression can be helpful within the safe space of therapy.

I want to do therapy with people. I don't want to do bookkeeping, try to get reimbursed from insurance, do advertising, figure and pay my quarterly taxes, worry about having my own health insurance! Having those things taken care of will decrease my stress and allow me to be more present for clients.

Nature. People who have overcome great adversity. Humans showing compassion and kindness.

Hiking, traveling, watching my pet rabbits' antics.