About Me

I grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In high school I fell in love with computers, which put me on the path of a career in Information Technology (IT). After college I moved to Northern Virginia – the IT hub of the US east coast – and worked in IT (Network Engineering, to be exact) for over 10 years. While I found it highly engaging and rewarding for a long while, I slowly started to lose interest in the work. I had resigned myself to sticking with it for the long-haul, however, because I had no conceivable alternative.

Fortuitously I stumbled upon an online video about developmental trauma, and was immediately enthralled. I began reading (and watching) everything I could find on the subject, and became fascinated by how well it explains the human condition. The maladaptive ways in which we often think and behave – which have largely befuddled philosophers for centuries – suddenly start to make sense in light of how emotional baggage from trauma impacts us.

It wasn't long before I realized that this was my new calling careerwise. I have since studied a number of therapeutic modalities, and have been trained in Internal Family Systems, Compassionate Inquiry, and Therapeutic Coaching. The passion that I have for this subject matter is beyond words, and I'm so happy to be able to help people to degrees far beyond what is typically achievable in the IT field.

I'm also the father of a wonderful 6 year-old girl who's into dinosaurs, playgrounds, and Peppa Pig. I love walking and climbing, and I'm a pretty serious dark chocolate truffle snob to boot.

Note

I'm a mental health practitioner, which does not require a license. I've opted to train in, and focus on, the specific approaches that I use rather than embarking on a more generalized traditional education path. The theories and approaches taught in universities are largely antiquated and centered on cognitive/behavioral change, and therefore don't get to the root of why we suffer in the ways that we do. While I was initially ambivalent about taking this path, it has worked out wonderfully and I couldn't be happier with the results.