About

When I first started out as a therapist, I worked in a hospital mental health clinic where most of my clients were dealing with chronic medical conditions. Although I trained in Medical Family Therapy, a specific model of treatment that considers the emotions which usually accompany a patient’s medical condition – I already had first hand knowledge of how emotions can cue behaviors.

The effects of an accidental electrocution in childhood taught me to pay attention to the interaction between my thoughts, emotions and my body, in particular, my heart rate.

I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with a Doctoral degree in Psychology and the founder of HollandHeart.

During my eight years with BellSouth, I co-created A Grand Affair,a program for people over 55 that is still in operation, served on the board of directors for Palmetto Richland Health’s then, Center for Cancer Treatment and Research and published ChildSource, a local parenting newspaper.

I earned a masters degree from the University of South Carolina and returned to Palmetto Richland for my internship. I completed my clinical training in family therapy at Palmetto Baptist and while I was there, I started a medical family therapy program and support group for infertility patients. After meeting licensing requirements, I began a doctoral program in Clinical Psychology at the Georgia School of Professional Psychology. Two years later, I transferred to Capella University: Minnesota and completed my doctoral training in Family Psychology.

Doctoral Research – The Relationship of Problem-Focused and Emotion-Focused Coping Strategies in Adults.

I have specialized training in:

• Medical Family Therapy – University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, New York.
• Strategic Therapy - Family Therapy Institute, Washington, DC.
• Cognitive Therapy - Beck Institute for Cognitive Therapy, Pennsylvania.

I’m also the author of Jake’s Journey and several articles about emotions in cardiology and infertility and currently volunteer with South Carolina Region 3 – Medical Reserve Corps.

Two things I firmly believe:

• Take the time to know who you really are
• Learn from yourself