About Me
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I was trained as a psychologist at the Florida State University clinical psychology program in Tallahassee, Florida, receiving my Ph.D. in 1995. I have been licensed to practice psychology in Maryland for 25 years. I have also been granted approval from the Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT) to practice telepsychology with residents of several other states.
I have helped hundreds of people with a variety of emotional and behavioral problems using an unconventional style that rejects the traditional notion of "mental illness." So, I don't approach these problems as if they were dysfunctions in you. Instead, they are your understandable attempts to escape the inevitable and painful dilemmas in human living. My role is to help you pay attention to your unspoken assumptions, the language you use to think and talk about your problems, and how these affect your beliefs about the possible paths available to you and the actions you take. Psychotherapy with me is not a direct or instructive form of teaching or treatment. Instead, it is a meandering and explorative process about what is meaningful to you and what you want out of life, given the way life works and all the consequences of your actions. To quote a well-known psychologist: "Psychotherapy is not what you think. It isn't the healing of an illness. It isn't guidance from a wise counselor. It isn't the mutual sharing of good friends. It isn't learning about esoteric knowledge. It isn't being shown the error of one's ways. It isn't finding a new religion. Psychotherapy isn't what you think... Psychotherapy is about how you think....It is about what you aspire to in your life and how you may unwittingly make it harder for yourself to reach those goals." James Bugental - 1999 My recent book, Smoke and Mirrors: How You Are Being Fooled About Mental Illness - An Insider's Warning To Consumers (see below), elaborates on my views. See my Informed Consent Form and Curriculum Vitae below. 
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People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar. - Thich Nhat Hanh
