Background

Alex is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist and Associate Professional Clinical Counselor. With a background in education who is all about lifelong learning, especially when it comes to working with a diverse constellation of clients, Alex assists clients gain knowledge about themselves and their surroundings in alignment with their goals to build toward being better in their lives overall. Alex loves being a therapist, as it is such an honor to support clients through the challenges and successes of their lives while also seeing them grow in their strength, resilience, understanding and more. Alex rarely feels like she has met a true stranger, which is to say she is open to working with many in the community, and particularly enjoys working with adults, caregivers, couples, educators, elders, students, women and those navigating a specific season of life (for example relationship changes, graduation, returning to work, retirement, etc.). 

Alex has lived all throughout the West coast, receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Rhetoric & Media Studies (Communications) at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon before heading to the desert to complete her Master’s in Higher Education at Arizona State University. Alex then worked at the University of Washington in Seattle before returning back home to Northern California in order to help with family caregiving. While working at University of California, Davis, Alex decided to return to graduate school to pursue her Master’s of Science in Counseling from California State University, Sacramento. Alex’s research and training focuses included couples and family therapy, LGBTQ+ informed care, eco-anxiety and family planning, complex grief, resiliency in underrepresented populations, non-monogamy and nontraditional relationships, workplace anxiety, as well as caregiver burnout and advocacy. Outside of the therapy practice,  Alex likes hanging out with her people, traveling, watching classic movies, checking out new music, and cuddling her two cats, who might even make an appearance in session sometimes.

Approach & Values

First and foremost, Alex has immense respect and gratitude for  clients she has the privilege of working with; it is not always easy to prioritize the choice of seeking support and she is grateful you are here! Alex recognizes that what is discussed in session can be topics you may have never even talked about with people you trust the most. Alex seeks to authentically tailor her approach to who you are and what is going on in your life so as to identify what options you have available to make the changes you seek. Authenticity is a key part of the values she holds in the space you share, and she strives to use her experience, knowledge and resources to meet you in your own authenticity of getting to the root of what you are experiencing. As a multiracial person, Alex operates from an intersectional lens both personally and professionally. That is, she is curious about the various parts of our identities that make us who we are individually and collectively. Alex explores your values, culture, gender, what your family is like, what you want from a relationship, and what music and/or TV you are watching, because she cares about what you care about (but don’t worry, we don’t have to talk about anything you don’t to or maybe aren’t ready to).  One of her favorite parts of being a therapist is having unconditional positive regard for clients, not judging what you are thinking nor how you feel, and get to reflect with you some great things about you that may just be a bit tough to see right now.

So what does that look like? Sessions start wherever you would like to, and are focused around helping you become more in tune with your present self and what you would like to change or build on, with perhaps some reflection on how you have been feeling both emotionally as well as physically, what has worked before, what you envision the solution to be, what this would look like if it was like a story you were watching, and probably some other approaches too! For her sessions with multiple people, you get to do this all together, which can be even more valuable for when you take it beyond the session and put it in action in your shared lives. Alex also offers homework at the end of every session, which could be journaling, taking a nap, or reviewing something we share, but there’s no grading and nothing required, promise.

Long ago, Alex made the decision to commit her career to public service in some way, first with education and now with mental health. To Alex, the path for both is interwoven in her beliefs in equity and access for All, and therefore hope to provide for her community (that’s you!) informed therapeutic guidance that helps you to learn about who you are as well as what empowers you in life as part of the change we all make together in this world every day. You have gotten this far doing your best, and Alex believes in you to keep going. Alex is grateful to join you on this portion of the journey as well as for when you are ready to continue on beyond your time together. 

Certifications and Specialized Training

• 2023 – Dementia Caregiver Education Training

• 2023 – Queer Informed Narrative Therapy Certification

• 2022 – Introduction to Relational Life Therapy seminar

• 2022 – California Child Abuse Mandated Reporter Training

• 2022 - California Dept of Aging Diversity Education series

• 2022 – LGBTQ Dementia Training

• 2022 – Mandated Reporting and Elder Abuse

• 2021 – Counseling on Access to Lethal Means/Suicide Prevention

• 2020 – NIH Resilient Scientist Mental Health Training Program

Education

• Bachelor of Arts in Rhetoric and Media Studies. Willamette University.

• Master of Education in Higher and Postsecondary Education, Arizona State University.

• Master of Science in Counselor Education, California State University, Sacramento.

  • Emphasis in Marriage Couple Family Counseling