You've spent your career being the person who shows up when everyone else is falling apart. You're good at it. And somewhere along the way, the job started following you home.
That can look like a shorter fuse with your spouse or kids. Sleep that never quite resets. Scanning exits at a restaurant. A call from years ago that still shows up uninvited. Feeling flat when you're supposed to be enjoying something. Drinking a little more than you'd planned, more often than you'd planned. None of it is dramatic enough to call a crisis, so you keep going. That's usually when people reach out to me.
Who this is for
I work with law enforcement, fire, EMS, dispatch, corrections, and the people married to them. Line-level and command staff. Active, retired, and medically separated. If you're in Oregon, Washington, or California and can get in front of a screen, we can work together.
You don't need a diagnosis, a critical incident, or a peer support referral to start. "Something's off" is a perfectly good reason.
What I actually know about the job
I'm not a first responder. I won't pretend otherwise. What I can tell you is that I've spent years in this field near the work, not reading about it.
My career started in 2009 with a juvenile diversion program within a police department, then residential treatment, community mental health, and years of crisis and co-responder work alongside LAPD and other public safety agencies. I've been on scene. I've watched and worked together with officers as they manage a situation in the moment and then carry it for weeks. I know what shift work does to a marriage and what a bad call does to sleep. I understand the culture, the chain of command, and what "fit for duty" means to you and to your department.
The practical result: you don't have to translate. You don't have to explain what a 10-code is, why you sit facing the door, or why you're not going to cry about something that would wreck a civilian. I get it, and we can move faster because of that.
What we work on
Most first responders come in for one or more of these:
- Cumulative stress that's changed how you react at home
- A specific incident that hasn't settled
- Sleep, hypervigilance, and being unable to power down off shift
- Anger or irritability that's costing you at home or at work
- Moral injury: having done, seen, or failed to prevent something that violates what you believe is right
- Marriage and relationship strain, including the "you're never really here" conversation
- Retirement, medical separation, or leaving the job and not knowing who you are without it
- Internal affairs, legal, or administrative stress that has nowhere to go
- Drinking or other habits that started as a way to shut it off
You don't have to translate. You don't have to explain what a 10-code is, or why you sit facing the door.
How I work with first responders
Direct and practical. I'm not going to flinch at any details, and I'm also not going to nod at you for 50 minutes with a blank stare. If I notice a pattern, I'll say so, and we'll sort out together whether it fits.
Some of the work is concrete: sleep, reactivity, boundaries, getting through a rough stretch. When a specific incident is driving the present, I use trauma-focused therapy and EMDR, which is well suited to critical incidents and to people who would rather not talk through every detail out loud. You set the pace. I won't push you into material you're not ready for.
There's also room for humor. Dark humor is fine. It's how the job survives.
Confidentiality, in plain terms
This is the question first responders ask first, so here's the answer.
Sessions are confidential. I do not report to your agency, your supervisor, or your union. I am not conducting a fitness-for-duty evaluation, and nothing we discuss goes into any personnel file. Standard legal limits apply (imminent danger to yourself or others, abuse of a child or vulnerable adult, a court order), and I can walk you through exactly what those are so there are no surprises.
I do not conduct any pre-employment evaluation services for current or former therapy clients. If a conflict comes up, I'll tell you and help you find someone else.
Questions first responders ask
Will my department know I'm in therapy?
No. I don't report to your agency, your supervisor, or your union, and there is no personnel file involved. The only exceptions are the standard legal limits, which I can walk you through before we start, or if you sign a release of information requesting for your records to be shared.
Do I have to go through the call in detail?
No. Some people want to; most don't. EMDR in particular doesn't require you to narrate every detail out loud for it to work.
Can my spouse or partner be part of it?
Yes, when it's clinically appropriate. This is individual therapy, but I can include a partner or family member within that work when it helps.
I work nights and rotating shifts. Will scheduling work?
Usually. Telehealth removes the drive, and I can flex around rotations. We'll sort out a realistic rhythm in the consultation.
Practical details
Telehealth only, by secure video, for clients located in Oregon, Washington, or California at the time of the session. Sessions are 50 minutes. Scheduling can flex around shift rotations.
$225 per session. I accept PacificSource (commercial and OHP) and Blue Cross. Some agencies and unions reimburse for therapy; check your EAP or benefits before assuming you're paying out of pocket. If your insurance isn't listed, contact me anyway. There are often other ways to get sessions covered, and I can help you sort that out. See Fees & Insurance for details.
If after a phone call it turns out I'm not the right fit, I'll point you to someone who is.
