OUR PURPOSE

Adapt, Adjust, Accept. 

The concept of "Adapt, Adjust, Accept" came to my husband and I when reflecting on my own personal experiences. This process was one I had to move through during my adolescent years when I was faced with a new reality - one wherein I had become a person living with a physical disability.

I still remember the fear, the sadness, and the exhaustion that I felt. I remember the social ostracism and the loneliness. I remember feeling fear over my present and uncertainty about my future. I remember deflating when hope left me and I remember the heartbreak I felt when I realized that living life as a person with a disability was going to be my reality. I was fortunate in that I had a strong support system, but it wasn't enough. I tried to get help; I searched for therapists who might have been able to understand my circumstances, and what I was going through, therapists who wouldn't simply offer me condescending platitudes. Again and again, I heard: "it's going to be okay", "time will heal", "you'll adjust", "it could be worse" etc., but none were helpful. I put on a mask of strength and courage, a mask that I only rarely removed. I feared that if I faced reality without the mask I would fall apart and be unable to put myself back together.

So why would you want this mess of a therapist, right? A fair and reasonable question...I believe what sets me apart from many of my peers is my first-hand, personal experience with disability/trauma. Yes, I have a Master's degree in Social Work and I've been trained to use CBT, DBT as well as multiple other therapeutic modalities, but so have thousands of other mental health professionals out there. What I am able to offer you is an approach that goes beyond the textbook; one that is sincere, real, informed and unique.