"I grew up in a small town in northwestern Pennsylvania. Through family values and the small town atmosphere, sports became a vast part of my life. I watched, played, and talked sports. I trained, dreamed, and worked hard to be the best athlete that my mind and body would allow me to be. Basketball and softball were the main sports that I played throughout high school, though basketball was my true passion. Like many athletes, my sports career took a turn when I suffered a knee injury my junior year of high school. After hearing that "pop", my mind-body connection has never been the same. Through three knee surgeries, a rash teenage decision to die my hair black, and some weight gain, my depression and OCD symptoms grew rapidly, bringing a slew of body image and confidence issues with them.

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Ironically, during this time I was taking an Intro to Psychology college course and began to learn more about human behavior. I knew I wanted to have some sort of career in sports however psychology continued to become more and more intriguing. I attended East Carolina University and double majored in Psychology and Sport Studies. Through my sport studies major, I began to grow my interest in exercise and training. I developed a passion for fitness and eventually received my personal training and yoga certifications from the National Council of Certified Personal Trainers in 2014.

Through my psychology major and my own experience in mental health therapy, my interest in counseling also grew. In 2015, I graduated from Seton Hall University with my Masters in Professional Counseling. I continued with my education and received my Post-Masters Certificate in Sport Psychology from The University of California at Pennsylvania.

I moved back to North Carolina in 2016 and currently hold the title of a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor from the North Carolina Board of Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of PA and soon to be a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of AZ.

When settling down in Raleigh, I decided to use my years of experience working with athletes and within the mental health field to officially establish my practice, MentPhys Wellness PLLC. My work with clients stems from concepts and theories of cognitive behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing. I am also trained in ERP (exposure and response prevention). I specialize in performance anxiety, OCD and perfectionism, eating disorders/BDD, and life transitions (especially injuries and having to leave/stop your sport). Since becoming a mom in 2020 (and now a mom of two boys), I have expanded my specialities to work with adults looking to start a family (especially new moms).

I strive to increase my clients' self-esteem through the encouragement of resources of nutrition, physical exercise, mental skills training, relaxation and calming techniques, yoga, focus and concentration techniques, and positive self-talk. My overall goal is to provide my clients with the help that I was unable to receive at the time of my injury and to increase their knowledge of what it truly means to be mentally fit."