In Her Own Words:
“ I’m passionate about maternal mental health care because I’m a mother and grandmother myself. I want to give babies and children the very best start possible – what better way to do that than to help their moms? Therapy is not just a job for me – it’s a calling. The road to becoming a psychologist was a long but rewarding one. I started out studying clinical psychology at Abilene Christian University, thinking that I would become a master’s level therapist (such as an LPC). But then I learned that psychologists are truly the gold standard when it comes to non-medication treatment. I wanted to be the very best that I could be, so I went on to earn my doctorate. My doctoral program (Fielding Graduate University) enabled me to also earn a Parent-Infant Mental Health specialization, which included extra training in this area and led to my doing some original research on the roots of postpartum depression. Like all psychologists, I had two years of clinical internships. The first year, I worked with adults at a state hospital (Big Spring, TX) and with children as a community intern (TTU, Lubbock, TX). My second year was in an ob-gyn clinic (Greenville, TX), where I refined my expertise in maternal mental health. In the years since, I have focused my work on maternal and child mental health care.
“I have raised four children to adulthood, and I know what it’s like to feel overwhelmed by the things that life throws at you! Sometimes you need to talk to somebody that won’t judge you and who can help you heal. I also know that you want gold-standard care. That’s why I became a psychologist and why I continue to love what I do.”