I was trained in psychodynamically-oriented psychotherapy at Smith College School for Social Work and am a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) in California. In 1995 I began meditating and was ordained in the Soto Zen Buddhist lineage of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi in 2008. I lived at San Francisco Zen Center and Tassajara Zen Mountain Center as a resident practitioner for six years. I have participated in many workshops and retreats in the field of therapeutic mindfulness, including Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) with Jon Kabat-Zinn and Saki Santorelli; and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy with Marsha Linehan, Ph.D.

A longtime resident of San Francisco, I have extensive experience supporting people in creative professions, academic professionals and members of the LGBTQ communities. Assisting people impacted by life-changing illness, chronic pain conditions and medical situations requiring extensive management is central to my work. In addition, I am familiar with the interpersonal opportunities and complexities that can arise in spiritual communities.

I have helped troubled adolescents, trauma survivors, people diagnosed with chronic & persistent mental illness, people with substance abuse & dependence issues, and HIV+ men & women. I worked as a psychiatric crisis team clinician at a community-based mental health clinic at the University of California, San Francisco from 2007 to 2011.

Since 2010, I've been a facilitator for on-going Transforming Anxiety & Depression practice classes held at San Francsico Zen Center.

I am an enthusiastic cyclist and avid reader.