Teenagers are dealing with a lot at once – anxiety, depression, family conflict, the jump into adulthood, all while figuring out who they are underneath it. Navigating that requires trust first, and trust isn't automatic. You have to feel like the person across from you actually gets it before any of the rest matters. I spent years teaching in schools before becoming a therapist, and that time taught me how to really connect with teenagers and young adults, not just talk at them.

Once that trust is there, the work moves quickly. I use Narrative Therapy and DBT, which help someone see the story they're stuck in and give them what they need to write a different one. And that’s my expertise – building the kind of trust that allows someone to actually show up as themselves, and knowing exactly what to do once they have.