I come to this work from a long period of self-exploration, beginning in my teenage years. Being an immigrant from Latvia at a very young age and growing up in San Francisco gave me the opportunity to understand love and emotion across cultures and to rise to the challenges that come with it. My love for San Francisco and the Bay Area is immense and providing support to the community through my client work is incredibly meaningful to me.
I began my study in social work and complimented it with holistic health and healing. Merging the two was important to me, especially as I understood more and more that connection between our mind, body, spirit and heart is powerful and intertwined. I began using the healing practices of mindfulness and Autogenic Training to create more balance and harmony in my psyche and my body. Learning about Taoism and various other Eastern and Native Traditions enhanced my spirituality.
As I continued with my master’s studies in Integral Counseling Psychology, Gestalt Therapy became my passion and eventually my way of life. What I love most about Gestalt Therapy is that it is nourishing, dynamic, revealing, and transformative and at it’s essence promotes becoming more fully who we are.
With my many years in the mental health field and my life experience, I bring a sense of calm, ease, aliveness and humor to life’s deepest joys and challenges.
As a therapist and in our sessions, you may experience me as empathic, sensitive and open, or you may find me kindly tough, direct and grounded. However we find ourselves both individually and in our therapeutic relationship, I will always show up with honesty and integrity.
Outside of work, I enjoy being in nature, staying close to the sound and smell of the ocean and spending quality time with my children and loved ones.
Professional Affiliations
- Member of CAMFT, California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists
- Member of AAGT, Association for the Advancement of Gestalt Therapy
- Co-founder of the Bay Area Gestalt Institute
- Co-founder and Co-facilitator of the Gestalt Collective of San Francisco
- Assistant Teacher for Gestalt Therapy Courses at California Institute of Integral Studies, Saybrook University and abroad.
