Who I Am
I began my career as a Music Therapist with the Adolescent Division of Psychiatry at Miami Children’s Hospital. After completing my PhD in Music Therapy, I moved to Michigan where I served as the Director of Music Therapy at Wayne State University in Detroit and The University of Windsor in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.
After teaching for several years, I decided to go back to school to augment my knowledge base and skill-set in Humanistic and Clinical Psychology at the Michigan School of Professional Psychology. Because of my deep interest in the mind-body relationship, I also completed a graduate certificate in Complementary Medicine and Wellness at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan.
At the time that I began a private psychotherapy practice, I had the opportunity to specialize in Eating Disorders. Although I work with the entire spectrum of Eating Disorders, I am dedicated to working with individuals who struggle with compulsive overeating, binge-eating disorder, and those who have or are considering surgical options for weight loss. Since I do not focus on weight loss, per se, I do help with examining ones relationship with food and the meaning that food holds in ones life. In my office, there is absolutely no judgment or criticism, only a deep search for meaning and understanding while working through change, in a compassionate and caring environment.
For over eight years, I worked at the Oliver-Pyatt Center for Eating Disorders in South Miami, Florida. I ran groups in Spirituality and Music Meditation. The Oliver-Pyatt Center is a Comprehensive Treatment Center offering a high level of care for women with Eating Disorders.
Because of my interest in working with those who have not been able to maintain a normal body weight and size, I now devote my attention toward the evaluation and treatment of individuals undergoing surgery for weight loss. For the past 17 years, I have helped patients as they prepare for a new relationship with food and with their bodies before and after Bariatric surgery. Although I specialize in the treatment of eating disorders, it is NOT assumed that someone seeking surgery for weight loss necessarily has a diagnosable eating disorder.
As part of the first Special Interest Group (SIG) of the Academy for Eating Disorders (AED) on Bariatric Surgery in 2000, I have been pro-active in promoting comprehensive, pre-surgical screenings and evaluations of Bariatric surgery candidates that will assess readiness for change and help to determine the best possible patient outcomes.