My Bio

I graduated from University of North Carolina Chapel Hill with an undergraduate degree in psychology (Phi Beta Kappa; highest honors), and went on to complete my PhD at UNC Chapel Hill under the mentorship of professor Frank Floyd, a research psychologist in the direct lineage of couples research pioneer and renowned couples specialist, John Gottman. As a young student in my early twenties I had already begun coaching couples using a cognitive behavioral informed program in a pre-marital setting. 

Following my time in North Carolina, I relocated to Boston to complete my clinical internship and post-doctoral fellowship through Harvard Medical School. I then began a faculty position  as the project Director of the Study of Adult Development, a branch of the world’s longest running psychological research project, The Grant Study, then directed by George Valliant who remained at the helm for more than three decades before leadership turned to my mentor, Robert Waldinger, of Massachusetts General Hospital. So why talk about a 75 year long study that began with a handful of Harvard University graduates from the 1940s? Because, as George Valliant summarized for the Atlantic a decade ago, what the study shows is that, “Happiness is Love. Full Stop.”  

While my research career centered around relationships, I also focused on couples in therapeutic settings where I developed the skills for healing and a committment for helping couples succeed in their daily lives. Beginning with my clinical post graduate training in psychodynamic theory (think Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung), I continued to learn new modalities, most notably, Internal Family Systems, a game-changing form of paradigm developed by addiction counselor, Richard Schwartz, and the inspiration behind Pixar’s Academy-Award winning animated feature, Inside Out. All of which has informed my coaching approach with couples. 

As a Clinical Psychologist, I conducted original research and spent well over 20,000  hours helping my clients with challenges in their relationships. In 2018, I founded an integrative, female-led therapy  practice in  Massachusetts, where I continue to teach and supervise clinicians working with couples. 

My desire to help couples was amplified in the midst of the acute stressors faced in the pandemic. During those challenging years, I focused on my coaching model to serve more clients in the midst of the incredible need for more support for over-taxed relationships.  I am now launching this coaching master class for couples–a transformational 12-week investment in the most important relationship in your life.