About Me

Throughout the years, I’ve struggled with my own mental health journey.  I know the feeling of chronic anxiety and have experienced the extreme lows of depression.  I have struggled navigating the current mental health system for myself and family members. Due to my personal experiences, the interests of my clients are always my first priority, and I go above and beyond to make sure they get the results they need.

My formal medical training was completed through Indiana University.  Following my undergraduate training at IU Bloomington, I graduated from IU School of Medicine in 1996.  I completed both my residency (in Psychiatry) and fellowship (in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry) before starting my practice at IU Health in 2001. 

​

I worked at IU Health (and its various other names) for over 17 years, seeing clients at my outpatient office in the Eagle Highlands area.  I loved my busy schedule, helping large volumes of patients daily was rewarding. But I found myself feeling demoralized, I couldn’t sustain the belief that seeing patients for 15 minutes at a time was the right answer to long term benefits.  

​

In 2018, feeling defeated I left. I could no longer “fight the fight” with insurance companies. I was done battling billing codes, prior authorizations and countless other hurdles to support a for profit insurance driven healthcare system.

​

I left with no formal plan.  I began informally “retraining” myself.  I began attending integrative health conferences both in person and online.  I took courses in anti-aging and hormone optimization.  I even found myself enrolled in a vegan cooking program.  I was seeing treatment options for clients with new eyes!

​

In January 2020, I took a certification course with DNAlife. This course introduced me to the concepts of Nutrigenetics, Nutrigenomics and Pharmacogeneomics, and the applications of these sciences to help clients not only struggling with chronic mental illness, but to help clients feel optimal.  It transformed the way I look at mental health and psychiatry.  I no longer see one patient - one illness.  I look at the whole system and adapt treatment protocols to strengthen the system (the whole body and brain).  

​

In addition, I am a certified psychedelic assisted therapist and able to provide integration services for those receiving psilocybin or ketamine services elsewhere.  

​

All of this is to say, I do not know all of the answers.  I admit that to clients.  I will do my best to provide the answers as best we know them today. I am also committed to learning, so that new information can be implemented into your treatment as quickly and safely as possible.  Most importantly, I promise to listen. Thanks for taking the time to get to know me. 

​

IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO START AGAIN!