Education is a passion of mine. I have always loved learning and being in school and consider it a great privilege to have had the support to pursue my passion for my career and education. Though I launched my career near a decade ago, I continue to consider myself an active student and learner every day, as I am a strong believer that the therapeutic relationship with my clients, as well as the teaching relationship with my students, provides learning at both ends for all parties involved. I also continue to learn as a Ph.D student and professor of universities in San Diego today.
Apart from the community outreach that I love to do with parents, teachers, and students at local schools in San Diego, I have had the privilege of helping future generations of the mental health field and other holistic healthcare professions in their training. My experience as an educator varies from teaching 3-year Master’s program courses to supervising clinical work in a group setting.
Future Mind-Body-Spirit Practitioners
As a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor and AASECT Certified Sex Therapist, I have a
breadth of experience in holistic approaches to mental health, in particular sexual health and
wellness. My passion for Human Sexuality education is especially dear to me, and I feel very
fortunate when I get to pull from this specialization in teaching about sex therapy and sexuality to others, especially in regards to how they can help their clients work through their own sexual health issues and guide them to attain their optimal sexuality goals. Some of my favorite experiences as a professor and educator are from the University of San Diego and Bastyr University.
Teaching Graduate Students at the University of San Diego
As a former graduate student myself at the University of San Diego, it is a special honor to now be an Adjunct Professor of the graduate Clinical Mental Health Counseling masters degree program. I love that I get to share my knowledge around mental health, particularly on clinical skills, relationships, sexual health, trauma, and sex therapy education. It is important to me that students get to hear my perspective of the mind-body-spirit connection as it relates to mental health, especially when it comes to relationships, sexual health, and wellness, which are areas that can often be missed in an over-medicalized western society.
I have taught courses including: Advanced Human Sexuality, Couples & Sexuality, and clinical supervision group (Practicum) at the University of San Diego in the School of Leadership and Educational Sciences (SOLES) graduate M.A. program: Clinical Mental Health Counseling. I am fortunate to have the opportunity to nurture future therapists who are studying to achieve their Master’s degree to become licensed therapists.
Clinical Supervision in Practicum
I have also taught the Practicum class at USD for the students in the Master’s program which is a clinical supervision group where I help students expand their clinical skills through watching their recorded sessions with clients. Students share videos of their work in therapy with clients, and I facilitate group clinical feedback while also evaluating and giving students my clinical observations and feedback, expanding upon their clinical knowledge and skills through a strength-based lens and approach.
Students are able to learn from their case presentations and one another. I am proud to have the opportunity to influence the professional development of future generations.
Counseling Labs at Bastyr University
Another enriching teaching experience of my career has been with the students of Bastyr
University, which aligns so wonderfully with my holistic approach. I love working with the medical students of Bastyr, teaching Counseling labs in the Department of Counseling & Health Psychology in the School of Naturopathic Medicine. I provided feedback for the students studying to become Naturopathic Doctors as they role-play and practice their counseling skills on one another in hopes of developing the necessary skills to build and cultivate connections with their future patients.
I look forward to future education opportunities to impact the lives of mental health clinicians and holistic practitioners alike. The more time I can give students, the more I can learn with them. I hope to be of benefit to many more future professions. It is a joy to see these students thrive and take their skills out into the world and touch many more lives than I could alone.