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Planting Seeds
Services for Trauma Anxiety and Stress
EMDR and Mindfulness Based
Online & Virtual Therapy

Serving the Burlington and Mercer County NJ area (Bordentown, Chesterfield, Robbinsville, Lawrenceville, Princeton). 

You’re the one everybody goes to when they need help. They assume you have it all together because of your career success. But no one sees your struggle.

Anxiety has had a hold on you for a while. You’ve tried to push it away, but it’s getting worse. It’s affecting your sleep and how you interact with those in your life.

Life has felt so overwhelming that you can't find time to pursue your own interests, and the idea of spending time with others feels exhausting. You avoid having fun, seeing friends, going out with your spouse.

You're snapping at your kids and while you know you shouldn't something takes over and you can't help yourself.

You’ve thought about reaching out to a therapist or counselor, but the process of finding a great therapist online or in the area is frustrating!

You spend hours on Google, wade through all the therapists’ directories, make a bunch of calls, and only 1 or 2 therapists call you back.

Planting Seeds Counseling is the name I chose for my practice because I am all about planting the seeds of discovery and well-being. I believe that within all of us exists the capacity to be our best selves but we often cannot see it on our own. Often that best self is hidden by stress, anxiety, depression, past hurts, trauma, negative stories we have created, society and conditioning. We seek change and we seek happiness but it often seems elusive because we have experiences and our people's voices in our brains telling us no. There are limiting beliefs that control us and expectations we have put on ourselves or that other have put on us, which have kept us stuck. Change comes from doing the inner work of allowing ourselves to challenge beliefs and messages that do not serve us. Change comes from sharing those hurts and heal those past traumas in a safe and nurturing environment. It comes from challenging and changing the way we view the messages that reside within us, trying new things and internally challenging the status quo. Change comes from getting the support you need to believing in yourself and your self-worth. Change often occurs in increments and we need the support and validation to keep going.

For many years, I worked in a job that was slowly but surely killing me. I worked with marginalized populations, minority clients and those who had experienced significant trauma in their childhoods and in their present lives. I loved helping people, but I struggled with negative self-talk, feelings of worthlessness, the expectations of others and fear of leaving a "good job with benefits". Anxiety and Depression were ever present in my life as I took on the stress, anxiety and trauma of my clients. I tried many external things to help but nothing worked.

And then I had my son. All of a sudden I wanted more for him but I was also exhausted because I didn't know what I was doing, I felt like I wasn't good enough and I suddenly became a Stay at Home Mom when my whole life was about my career. I lost myself. I became angry and felt trapped.

It wasn't until I got help, got support from other moms, experienced the benefits of Mindfulness, EMDR and Sandplay and went inside and focused on myself did I begin to see what was possible and make real lasting change. My growth as a mother and as an individual is a daily task and one I know first hand does not come without bumps and bruises, but you can get better.

By working together, you have a safe space to explore all of these emotions, both good and bad, explore areas where you are feeling aligned and areas where you are disconnected, and challenge the expectations you think that you have to live up to.

 

Book below for a free 15 minute consultation

Succulent

My Background 

I am known as the "Woo Woo Therapist". I proudly hold that title as someone who incorporates a spiritual component to my psychological teachings. I utilize oracle cards, astrology and discussion of quantum leaping. I invite you to bring your spiritual leanings into our therapy as well. This is a safe space for all things "weird" and unconventional.

 

My education and training has given me the knowledge and training to help you heal, but I also lean into a higher power to help foster change.

 

As a Jungian based therapist, I understand that the unconscious plays a role in how we behave and what we think about ourselves and the world; that the experiences that we have had in the past contribute to who we are and the choices we make today. In our work together, we seek to recognize it, seek to heal it and make better choices today to help us make better choices for the future. By incorporating evidence based practices like EMDR along with a spiritual component, I hope to help you become whole.

As a therapist certified in EMDR, I have tremendous insight into the role of trauma and negative thoughts on our functioning and how those thoughts keep us stuck in in a continuous loop of suffering. By helping client move past their "stuck" thoughts and feelings, healing can often happen in months and release suffering that has often existed for years.

 

I recognize that trauma and its' effects are not always obvious and we've normalized horrific experiences as "not so bad". But if you find that you react to things that shouldn't cause the response that it did, it may be unresolved trauma manifesting itself. Or if you find yourself consistently engaged in behaviors that you know you "shouldn't be doing", that too may be consequence of unresolved trauma.

Through education, mindfulness, spirituality and humor, we focus on where you are in the present moment in order to help you react less to past issues or future worries.  We explore the ingrained messages that unintentionally cause us to behave and react in ways that are not helpful to us and those around us. I lovingly challenge you on your BS because I know that you are capable of better. We have higher selves to support us and with acceptance, gratitude, joy and compassion we can get through our difficult times.

Based on my experiences, personally and professionally, I understand that change is not a straight line but rather a series of stops and starts. The journey to wellness is not about seeing the whole staircase and wondering how and if you will ever get there. The journey is about just taking one step at a time until you reach the top. 

Personally, I am a mother to a toddler and I am a wife. These roles, along with being a minority, female and business owner, give me lots of insight and teach me a lot about myself and the world. Juggling many hats, I understand the struggles we face in society and know how important it is to be seen and validated. Fun for me is gardening (or trying to), cleaning, baking, perusing shops and spending time out in nature. 

Education

Bachelors Degree in Psychology from NYU

Masters' Degree in Clinical Mental Health from TCNJ

Masters' Degree in Education from Rutgers University

Certifications

NBCC Certified

EMDR Certified

Sand Play Level 3 certified

RYA 200 Hour Yoga Certified

Associations

American Counseling Association

EMDRIA

RYA

Seminars

Presentations at TCNJ, Rider University and various community agencies throughout Mercer County, NJ and Ocean County, NJ

Serving Burlington and Mercer County, NJ (Bordentown, Chesterfield, Hamilton, Robbinsville, Princeton, Lawrenceville)

NJ License #37PC00631700

Who I Help

  • I work with adults who have experienced trauma

 

  • I work with Moms who are experiencing stress, managing their everyday.

  • I work with adults who are experiencing anxiety.

  • I work with adults who are struggling with day to day functioning

How I Do It

  • I utilize active listening to hone in on what you want, what you are doing to support your desires and what you are doing to sabotage your goals. Listening and asking lots of questions helps me understand patterns and behaviors that are keeping you stuck.

  • I utilize values charts, empty chair techniques and limiting belief work to help you identify the subconscious messages which may be sabotaging you.

  • I explore with you your beliefs and self-talk and challenge the beliefs and self-talk that do not serve you

  • EMDR is utilized to help you address and heal underlying trauma that is dictating your behavior. EMDR is also used to reframe longstanding toxic beliefs and messages.

  • Utilization of mindfulness, either through guided meditations, breathing or tracking your thoughts to bring awareness and ground you.

  • Utilization of the spirit. Whether through the use of oracle cards, visualization, or access of your soul self, we can seek guidance from your intuition and inner knowing to help you figure out what you need.

Book now to schedule a 15 minute consultation

What's in It for You

Transformation

  • In our work together, you will find that your thoughts change and your actions change.

  • You begin to see yourself differently.

  • You begin to transform yourself because you learn to talk to yourself differently.

 

  • You transform because you learn to start trusting yourself and learn to ask for what you want.

 

  • You transform because you realize that you are not alone or "weird". You realize that it is ok to think your thoughts and feel your feelings and to be scared by it all.

 

  • Your life transforms because you begin to shine a light on your flaws and your strengths, and address patterns that no longer serve you.

  • Your life transforms because you become vulnerable and to take risks.

  • Your life transforms because you can look at something that you thought held power over you for years and it no longer hurts or has power over you. 

  • Your life transforms because you are able to regulate yourself more quickly after an anxiety attack (if they even show up anymore).

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