ABOUT ME

I started my career working with children with autism at a social skills clinic, and this is where I first became passionate about all things social communication! I specialize in conversation, perspective taking, social inferencing, nonliteral language skills, and understanding humor.

I received a bachelor’s degree from California State University Fullerton, where I majored in communication disorders and minored in child development. I received a master’s degree from Washington State University in speech and hearing sciences. While in graduate school I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work at Camp Candoo, an intensive speech therapy and early literacy summer camp for children with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS). For families traveling from all over the country, I provided intensive individual and group therapy using research-based literacy interventions along with Dynamic Temporal and Tactile Cueing (DTTC), a top treatment method for children with severe CAS. Learning from and working with experts in this area was pivotal for my career.

After 15 years of working with hundreds of children and young adults, I now have a wide variety of experience in the areas of autism, early intervention, childhood apraxia of speech, language, articulation, stuttering, and craniofacial disorders. In addition, I am a UCLA PEERS® certified provider. 

After working at several reputable clinics in Orange County I have decided to pursue a practice of my own in order to tailor my services and provide the best therapy for my clients. I am excited to be able to reach more people in the community, as this is my dream job and I am passionate about supporting and empowering others to improve their communication. Effective communication truly is life-changing. Because I want all treatment decisions to be decided by me and my clients, I do not accept insurance. However, I am happy to provide you with a detailed superbill if you are able to get out-of-network reimbursement.

Regarding my method, I believe building rapport with my clients is critical for participation, motivation, and generalization of learned skills. Because children learn through play and discovery, I incorporate your child’s unique interests into our sessions to target their specific needs. I love children and I believe that is apparent in my connection with my young clients, and in the results we achieve. You will often find us playing toys and games, but don’t let that fool you- this is where real gains are made! With teens and young adults therapy sessions are functional and collaborative. Speech therapy sessions can and should look different depending on the client you are working with, so flexibility is crucial!

As a mother I know that what is best for one family might not be best for another. That’s why I offer my services in your choice of setting: office, home, park, daycare/preschool, or virtually. I also welcome parent involvement at the level you and your child are comfortable. I am happy to include parents so they understand the therapeutic process and can implement strategies in day-to-day life. 

In my personal life I enjoy reading, traveling, going to concerts and the theater, but most of all, spending time with my sweet and sassy two-year-old daughter!