Like most therapists, I was drawn to the world of psychotherapy because of my own struggles with mental health. I learned what anxiety was at a very young age and tried to cope without an understanding of why it was happening. Though channeling my emotions into music gave me a good foundation for creative distress tolerance, I hadn’t yet learned how to listen to the calls that were coming from inside the house.

Between a growing thirst to more deeply understand the root of my anxiety and my career path as a rock star not working out, I graduated high school in 2012 and began working in the community with neurodivergent and disabled individuals to help them meet their goals.

It was here that I first got to practice mental health care in a client-centered way. I worked directly in family systems to learn about their specific strengths and needs. Letting that inform our approach, we incorporated the naturally supportive properties of art, nature, and community so that transformational change was actually within reach.

After graduating from UMB in 2019, I took what I learned into Baltimore County as a Family Preservation Social Worker. From within the belly of the beast (Department of Social Services), I did what I could to help families increase insight, resilience, and access to resources so children could stay out of the foster care system. From this vantage point, I got a good look at the systemic root rot that places so many at risk for social isolation and burn out.

Then the pandemic hit.

As everyone shut in for a lock down, many of us took the break we had from what felt like center stage to look within. Out of the spotlight of society, we could finally answer the calls coming from our bodies and explore more freely what a more authentic version of ourselves might look like. Those calls coming from inside the house held truths that deconstructed the metaphorical mask I unknowingly used to stay safe. The building blocks of that mask had been cracking for years but finally I saw how neuro-normativity, compulsive heterosexuality, internalized transphobia, unhealthy attachment, and implicit bias were working to uphold a system rooted in white supremacy.

In this next chapter, I am taking the things from my journeys past that align with what I believe are collective innate values: connection, creativity, and curiosity. With a new lease on life (and gender), I have the privilege to create a space where we can all explore the depths of where our challenges are rooted, wield the power in our strengths, and transform into the best versions of ourselves. Welcome to your Softer Landing.