• "Tamara, thank you for helping me find the courage to talk to my partner about my abuse. I don't think I would ever have found the words on my own…. For the first time in my life, I’m not ashamed to say 'I am a survivor of sexual abuse' and I'm very clear that it was never my fault. Thank you for believing me and being there to support me."
    —Linda, 40

Getting lost and finding your way.

Download My Curriculum Vita (PDF)

I’ve always been fascinated by stories of getting lost and finding the way home. This captivation with journeys has been a gift, a tool and an enduring thread throughout my personal and professional life.

As a counselor, I’ve embarked on hundreds of journeys, and I’m ready to start one with you. My passion for your story will help me to meet you where you are and to travel with you as you discover the many paths before you – and help you to choose which ones to follow.

My professional training began with a Bachelors Degree in Psychology from Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. I completed my Masters of Education in Counseling and Student Services at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas in 1990. Since that time, I have chosen to continue my professional training by taking over 1300 hours of additional classes in trauma and abuse, grief and loss, marginalized populations, relationship issues, hypnosis, clinical supervision, ethics and related coursework.

I am Licensed as a Professional Counselor in the states of Colorado and Texas and have been in private practice since 1991. I have been certified as a Clinical Hypnotherapist since 2004 and provide clinical supervision for other therapists seeking state licensure or additional training.

With nearly two decades of practice, I’ve become a skilled guide for your journey. In general, we will dwell less in the realm of problems and give much more weight to your joys, strengths and dreams as a way to keep you moving forward. I will help you uncover deeper life lessons in the situations you encounter, so that you can let go of patterns that have outlasted their usefulness and worn out their welcome. I will also help you distinguish needs and wants – and trace the origins of your feelings to the source, to discover the meanings, value and power behind them that still resonate within you today.

Because we are traveling companions, I’ll want to hear about where you’ve been and where you want to go. You can expect that we’ll take some detours, hit a few road blocks, find unexpected treasures and laugh with each other along the way. And together, we’ll get somewhere that neither of us would have reached alone.

While my work is spontaneous, improvisational, and tailored to your specific needs and desires, it is consistently informed by and grounded in the following areas of study:

  • Psychodynamic theories of counseling, which recognize the role of your early life experiences and the (often unconscious) impact they continue to have on your life as an adult;
  • Narrative therapy, which examines the stories that you tell yourself about your own life experiences – your beliefs, your values, your assumptions, your dreams and your intentions – and the impact those stories have on your life;
  • Power differences and power dynamics, which influence the choices that you believe are available to you;
  • Systems theory, which focuses on the impact that different areas of your life have on other parts of your life and your world;
  • Women’s studies and women’s issues, which may impact your life directly and indirectly;
  • Social justice and social movements of marginalized groups, which may have touched your life;
  • Creative and expressive arts in healing, which can help you explore and own your own truths about you and your life;
  • Solution-focused and strength-based therapies, which help you recognize and identify skills, abilities, beliefs, and social networks that support you in being more of who you want to be;
  • Hypnotherapy, imagery and trance work, which use concentration and focused attention to help you change habits, manage pain, enhance learning and test-taking skills, and treat depression, anxiety or post traumatic stress disorder; and
  • Psychoneuroimmunology and Somatic / Body Psychology, which emphasize the reciprocal relationship between your body and mind; this branch of psychology is informed by neuroscience.

If you would like to learn more about my background and my practice, or explore different ways how we might work together, please contact me today. I look forward to beginning our journey together and helping you to create a life story that’s bold, passionate, soulful and filled with joy.