Trauma-responsive therapy on Maui for people who feel capable on the outside but stuck underneath.

Depth-oriented work designed for clarity, capacity, and structural change.

Clinical Orientation

I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor with a master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. My work is grounded in trauma-responsive, somatically informed psychotherapy, with a particular focus on how unresolved trauma is held in the nervous system and how it can be metabolized through depth-oriented, attuned work.

My clinical interest developed through repeated exposure to situations in which insight, effort, and even skill acquisition were present, yet meaningful change did not occur. I am particularly focused on the level of work where emotional and physiological experience can move beyond understanding into nervous system reorganization.

My work is depth-oriented and carefully structured. I place a strong emphasis on containment, pacing, and stabilization. I integrate clear therapeutic frameworks, including Dialectical Behavior Therapy, to support capacity and safety as deeper nervous system work unfolds. Structure, in this context, supports sustained engagement with experience over time, within a therapeutic relationship that can hold complexity without rushing resolution.

I pay close attention to timing, readiness, and the signals emerging from the nervous system in each moment. From my perspective, change occurs less through pressure or insight alone and more through the careful establishment of conditions that allow movement to happen without being forced. In my work, therapy includes moments of intensity and destabilization when such disruption is necessary for reorganization. These moments are held within a larger process of preparation, expression, and integration. I do not rely on rescue or premature stabilization to manage intensity, nor do I pursue intensity without structure.

Who This Work Fits Best

This work is best suited for individuals who have already engaged in therapy and bring insight, self-awareness, and motivation, yet still feel that something essential has not shifted. Many people arrive having done significant cognitive and relational work, while noticing that familiar patterns, emotional responses, or physiological states remain unchanged. Often, what has been missing is not effort or insight, but a therapeutic process with enough continuity to work at the level where these patterns are organized.

It tends to be a good fit for those who are resourced and willing to engage a depth-oriented process that may involve discomfort, patience, and sustained attention. The work asks for an ability to stay present with internal experience, including emotional and bodily sensations, rather than moving quickly toward explanation or resolution.

This approach is not well suited for situations involving acute crisis, high instability, or a primary desire for symptom management without deeper engagement. It also may not be the right fit for those who are seeking to be fixed by the therapist rather than participating actively in a collaborative process.

How I Work

My work centers on creating the conditions that allow meaningful change to occur. These conditions are established and refined within an ongoing therapeutic relationship, rather than assumed to be present from the outset. I pay close attention to safety, pacing, containment, and relational attunement, with particular emphasis on how the nervous system is responding moment to moment. Rather than assuming readiness, I track capacity and timing carefully, adjusting the work to what can be metabolized without overwhelm.

Sessions are guided by what is emerging emotionally and physiologically, while remaining anchored in clear structure. I use containment and skills-based supports when needed to stabilize and orient the system, and I shift into deeper somatic and experiential work when there is sufficient safety and readiness. This balance allows the work to move over time, without becoming either uncontained or overly procedural.

I am attentive to when stabilization and containment are necessary, and equally attentive to when they begin to function as substitutes for engaging material that requires deeper expression and movement. My goal is not comfort, but meaningful change that is integrated and sustainable. This discernment relies on continuity and familiarity with the person’s patterns, rather than on momentary assessment.

I am deliberate about not pushing for outcomes. When movement stalls, I slow the process down and attend to what may be organizing the system beneath awareness. Change, as I understand it, occurs when experience is given enough space, precision, and support to reorganize on its own, rather than being directed or interpreted prematurely.

Professional Roles

My work includes direct clinical care, intensive facilitation, clinical leadership, supervision, training, consultation, and writing. While I hold multiple roles, my primary focus remains depth-oriented therapeutic work with individuals who are prepared to engage a serious and demanding process.

I serve as Program Director of Psychedelic Services at Illuminate Wellness, where I hold responsibility for clinical oversight, program development, and the supervision of other clinicians doing this work. This role involves supporting ethical decision-making, clinical discernment, and responsible engagement with intensity across providers and settings.

I also provide supervision, consultation, and training to clinicians and organizations. Colleagues often seek my involvement when cases involve complexity, intensity, or layered responsibility, and when thoughtful clinical judgment is required rather than standardized intervention.

In addition to clinical and leadership roles, I am an author and speaker. My writing and teaching reflect a sustained interest in how therapy actually produces change beneath the surface of conversation and in the responsibilities that come with depth-oriented work.

Training

My clinical training reflects a sustained commitment to depth-oriented, trauma-responsive work. Rather than approaching training as the acquisition of techniques, I have focused on programs that require ongoing integration, supervision, and refinement of clinical judgment.

Psychedelic Somatic Interactional Psychotherapy has been central to how I understand nervous system healing and reorganization. This work shaped my orientation toward relational healing, and it continues to inform how I engage somatic and experiential processes in both individual therapy and intensive formats. It also reinforced my understanding that nervous system healing is relational, cumulative, and dependent on careful attunement over time.

My training in Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy further refined my understanding of altered states, readiness, and integration, particularly in the context of complex trauma. This work reinforced the importance of structure, preparation, and post-session containment when working at depth, especially when destabilization is part of the therapeutic process.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy provides a foundational framework that supports the work I do alongside trauma-focused and somatic approaches. I rely on DBT to support capacity, stabilization, and continuity, particularly when individuals are engaging emotionally demanding material. In my practice, DBT functions best not as a standalone solution, but as a structure that allows deeper work to proceed safely and effectively.

In addition to PSIP, KAP, and DBT, my training includes Brainspotting, EMDR, Holographic Memory Resolution, Emotion Focused Couples Therapy, and Internal Family Systems. These approaches inform how I track emotional, relational, and physiological processes, and how I integrate different layers of experience without fragmenting the work.

Across all training, my focus has remained on integration rather than allegiance to any single model. I am interested in how approaches complement one another, where they break down, and how they can be combined thoughtfully to support meaningful change rather than symptom management alone.

Next Steps

Interest in this work does not automatically mean that it is the right next step. Depth-oriented therapy requires readiness, capacity, and a willingness to engage a process that unfolds over time rather than offering quick relief.

If what you have read here resonates, the next step is not scheduling, but discernment. That includes considering whether this kind of work matches what you are seeking and whether the structure and pace of the work align with your circumstances.

For those who do choose to move forward, the process begins with careful assessment rather than immediate treatment. This allows the work to be oriented properly from the start and helps determine whether proceeding together is appropriate.

This approach is intentional. It protects the integrity of the work and supports outcomes that are meaningful rather than rushed.

Routing Note

Therapy services are provided through Illuminate Wellness Maui. This site describes my clinical orientation and scope of work. If you are interested in working together, please reach out directly through the contact form. I personally review all inquiries and either reach out myself or connect you with someone who will guide you through the next steps.