Hello!  I am St. Louis DBT’s founder and Lead DBT Trainer.  I am both proud and humbled (there’s a dialectic!) to be one of the first therapists in the world to have completed the rigorous national certification process for Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) clinicians from the DBT- Linehan Board of Certification.  In addition to seeing clients part-time in this practice, I also teach courses in DBT and Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) at the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University. 

I started my clinical career specializing in the treatment of trauma sustained by victims of violent crimes.  My interests then turned for a time to bereavement issues among children who had lost a loved one.  I started Camp Dragonfly, a bereavement camp in Illinois that I ran for 6 years.  Eventually, my true calling presented itself as a passion for helping people who struggle with suicide and/or self-injury.  

It did not take long for me to realize that typical CBT would not work with clients with severe depression and suicidal tendencies or with Borderline Personality Disorder.  CBT was too focused on change and not enough on acceptance of the individual as they were.  Both my client and myself would become frustrated with the process.  They felt judged and pushed while I felt discouraged and inept.  That’s when a helpful colleague suggested I learn about DBT.  I received my first training in DBT in 2001 and immediately saw the many benefits it would have for my clients AND myself.  Since then I have successfully treated hundreds of clients, many of which were considered “untreatable”.  

DBT combines the change-orientation of CBT and the acceptance strategies of Zen meditation, Eastern philosophies and most contemplative practices.  To learn more about the model, click here.

To make an appointment with me or one of the amazing therapists I have trained and/or hand-picked to provide the highest quality therapy services, call 314-932-7415 or click here.

In 2016, I created a co-operative community of wellness professionals called Gateway Wellness Associates. For more information on Gateway, click here.