My hope is that therapy leaves a lasting impact.
Meet Vanessa
My work is centered around supporting mothers, preteens, and teens through the challenges that can come with growing, caregiving, relationships, emotions, and everyday life. I care deeply about creating a space where people feel heard without feeling like they have to have everything figured out before they walk in.
For mothers, therapy may be a place to work through anxiety, overwhelm, identity changes, self-doubt, life transitions, or the pressure that can come with carrying so much for a family. Motherhood can be meaningful and rewarding while still feeling exhausting, lonely, or heavier than expected. I want moms to have a space where they can slow down, make sense of what they are carrying, reconnect with themselves, and feel more confident in how they want to show up in motherhood and in life.
I feel just as strongly about supporting preteens and teens (ages 10-17). Part of what brought me to this work is wanting young people to have the kind of support I wish I would have had growing up. These years can come with big emotions, changing relationships, school pressure, anxiety, anger, low self-esteem, depression, and the difficult task of figuring out who they are becoming.
I do not want therapy to feel like another place where a young person is being told what they are doing wrong. I want to hear their side of things, including what they wish the adults around them understood. They do not need to know exactly how to explain what is happening, and I do not expect trust to happen immediately. We can take time to build that relationship and figure things out together.
My approach is collaborative whether I am working with a mother or a young person. I bring my training, but I also recognize that every client has their own perspective, experiences, strengths, and needs. Together, we can get curious about what is going on and practice different ways of responding.
My goal is for mothers to feel more supported and grounded in themselves, while helping preteens and teens feel understood, build confidence, and develop skills they can use both now and as they grow. I want the work we do in therapy to make a meaningful difference in everyday life and have a lasting impact.
Relevant Post-Master Level Trainings
Teen Counseling Certification
Adolescent DBT Training
Adolescent Anger Management Training
Postpartum Psychosis: A Roundtable Discussion
Perinatal Mental Health: Culturally Informed Approaches to Screening, Assessment, and Treatment
Maternal Mental Illness and the Criminal Justice System.
Therapy for Mamas
Maybe you have been feeling more anxious, overwhelmed, irritable, or unlike yourself lately. You may be carrying so much for everyone else that your own needs keep getting pushed aside. Maybe motherhood has brought changes in your identity, confidence, relationships, or emotions that you were not fully prepared for.
I work with moms experiencing anxiety, depression, stress, difficulty managing emotions, parenting challenges, life transitions, and low self-esteem. Therapy can be a place where you do not have to hold everything together. We can make space for what you are carrying, better understand what has been weighing on you, and work toward changes that help you feel more grounded and supported in your everyday life.
Your needs matter too, not just the needs of everyone depending on you.
Areas of Support
Anxiety
This could look like constantly running through what could go wrong, or you find yourself overthinking decisions that used to feel simple. You may worry about your children, your relationships, your work, or whether you are doing enough.
Therapy can help you slow down the cycle of anxious thoughts and understand what keeps them going. We may work on managing worry, reducing the urge to constantly seek reassurance, and learning how to stay present even when uncertainty feels uncomfortable.
Depression
Maybe you are getting through the day, but you do not feel much like yourself. Things you once enjoyed may feel harder to care about, and even small tasks can take more energy than they used to.
We can make space for what you are experiencing without expecting you to simply "think positive." Therapy may include identifying patterns that are keeping you stuck, reconnecting with meaningful parts of your life, and taking manageable steps toward feeling more engaged again.
Emotional Regulation
Maybe you are more irritable than you want to be, lose patience quickly, or feel like your emotions go from manageable to overwhelming in a matter of seconds. You may feel guilty afterward and wonder why you reacted so strongly.
The goal is not to teach you to never become upset. We can work on recognizing what happens before emotions escalate, understanding your triggers, and practicing ways to pause and respond differently when you are overwhelmed. We can also work through guilt and repair after moments that did not go the way you wanted.
Motherhood & Identity
Maybe you love being a mom but sometimes wonder where the rest of you went. Motherhood may have changed your priorities, relationships, body, career, confidence, or sense of who you are.
Therapy does not have to be about becoming the person you were before motherhood. It can be a place to explore who you are becoming, what parts of yourself you want to reconnect with, and how to create an identity that includes being a mother without being limited to only that role.
Overwhelm & Stress
Maybe everyone seems to need something from you, and there is rarely a point in the day when your brain fully turns off. You might feel overstimulated, mentally exhausted, or guilty for wanting time to yourself.
Therapy can help you notice when you are approaching your limit before you reach the breaking point. We can work on boundaries, coping with everyday stress, asking for help, and finding realistic ways to make room for your own needs alongside the needs of your family.
Parenting Confidence
Maybe you second-guess yourself constantly. You may wonder whether you are being too strict, too lenient, too emotional, or somehow getting it wrong compared with everyone else.
Therapy can help you sort through outside expectations and become more confident in the kind of parent you want to be. We can explore your own upbringing, identify patterns you want to keep or change, and work on responding to your children in ways that feel more intentional rather than driven by guilt, fear, or pressure.
Therapy for Tweens & Teens
(Ages 10-17)
Maybe your child has started pulling away, or everyday conversations seem to turn into arguments. You want to help, but you are not sure what they need, or how to get them to talk about it.
I work with tweens and teens experiencing anxiety, depression, anger, difficulty managing emotions, life transitions, and/or low self-esteem. Therapy can be a place where your child feels heard and understood while we work together on changes that can make everyday life feel a little easier. Their perspective matters just as much as the concerns that brought them to therapy.
Areas of Support
Anger Management
Maybe disagreements escalate quickly, or your child says things in the moment that they later regret. You may feel unsure how to respond without making the situation worse.
My goal is not to make your child agreeable all the time or teach them to hide their anger. We will work on understanding what happens before an outburst and recognizing when frustration is building. Sessions may include practicing how to take a break, communicate a need, or handle a disagreement without becoming hurtful. We can also explore how to take responsibility and repair a relationship after a difficult moment.
Anxiety
This could look like your child worries about getting things wrong, replays conversations, or avoids certain situations. Anxiety can also show up as irritability, trouble sleeping, or physical symptoms such as stomachaches, not just saying, “I’m worried.” CDC
In therapy, we can explore what their worry is telling them and how they respond when it shows up. We may work through uncomfortable feelings, and take manageable steps toward things they have been avoiding. The goal is not to expect your child to never feel anxious; it is to help them have more choices when anxiety is present.
Depression
You may notice your teen spending more time alone or losing interest in things they used to enjoy. Depression does not always look like crying or obvious sadness. In teenagers, it can also involve irritability, low energy, and changes in sleep or appetite. These signs deserve attention, but they do not establish a diagnosis on their own. National Institute of Mental Health
I make room for your teen to talk about what life has been feeling like without expecting them to “just be positive.” Our work may include understanding difficult thought patterns, finding manageable ways to reconnect with daily life, and identifying what makes certain days especially hard. We will also assess their needs and whether additional support should be part of their care.
Emotional Regulation
Does your child describe their feelings as “too much,” or struggle to explain what is happening once they become overwhelmed? This section is for concerns that extend beyond anger, such as becoming flooded by disappointment, embarrassment, sadness, or frustration.
In our work together, we may practice naming emotions and noticing the first signs that things are becoming overwhelming. We will explore coping strategies that fit your child, including ways to ask for support or space. My aim is to help them respond to their feelings with more understanding, not make them feel wrong for having those feelings.
Life Changes & Transitions
A child may be starting a new school, or struggling with expectations that feel different from before. A teen may be looking forward to more independence while feeling unsure about everything that comes with it.
I offer support as children and teens work through these adjustments. We can talk about what feels hardest and figure out what might make the next step more manageable. That may mean practicing how to ask for help, preparing for an unfamiliar situation, or making room for feelings about what has changed.
The goal isn’t to expect a child or teen to feel comfortable right away. It’s to help them find ways to move forward without feeling they have to figure everything out alone.
Self-Esteem
Perhaps your child compares themselves to others, dismisses their own strengths, or avoids trying something because they fear failure. You may hear comments like “I’m not good at anything” and feel that your reassurance is not getting through.
Rather than asking your child to simply think positively, we can explore how they have come to see themselves and how they respond to setbacks. Our work may include noticing harsh self-talk, recognizing strengths they tend to overlook, setting boundaries, and making choices that reflect what matters to them. I want to help them develop a sense of worth that leaves room for mistakes and does not depend entirely on other people’s approval.
Not Sure Where to Start?
Feel free to reach out to discuss what has been happening, and see whether we might be a good fit. Click below to view scheduling options.