Julie is a Marriage, Family and Child Counselor, licensed in California since Jan. 1999. She has private therapy practices in Grass Valley. She specializes in treating depression, eating and body image issues, and relationship conflicts. Although her approach is usually cognitive-behavioral, she has trained in other disciplines in psychology and uses them when appropriate. She works with couples, individuals and groups of all ages.

Education

Julie completed her B.A. in Psychology and her M.A. in Psychology with an emphasis in Counseling Psychology in January, 1996 at California State University, Sacramento (CSUS). There she received the 1994 Andre Award for best student publication and presented her masters thesis titled Exploring the Relationship of Eating Disorders, Body Image, Family Environment and Locus of Control.

Training

Julie interned at a variety of settings from 1992 to 1999. These include, psychological counselor at CSUS student health center; middle school counselor, U.C. Davis Medical Center, Pediatrics division-Child Protection Center; and as a counselor for both community and county mental health clinics. She did crisis intervention for Nevada County Behavioral Health for over five years and has received training in both critical incident debriefing and the Psychology of Disasters at U. C. Berkley. She was President of the Nevada County Chapter of California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists for two years and served as a board member for several years, assisting other therapists in obtaining continuing education.

Philosophy

Life challenges, losses and traumas often result in emotional, relationship, and psychological blocks that interfere with the enjoyment of life. With the help of a psychological counselor, many of these issues can be reduced or eliminated in just a few sessions. In therapy, individuals can gain new self-awareness and coping skills that help them overcome these blocks. They become aware of destructive patterns in their lives and begin to see new choices where they once felt stuck. Clients can apply these new skills and insights to other areas of their lives. Counseling can also assist people to cope during a hard times or to achieve personal goals in order to live more fully.

Purpose of CounselingSelf.com

The purpose of this website is to offer online assistance and information to anyone who could benefit from learning new skills and techniques for coping with stress, depression, relationship issues or blocks that keep you from achieving your goals. It is meant to be a starting point for self-change and for linking with referrals that may help. CounselingSelf.com is NOT advocating online therapy as a replacement for traditional one-to-one therapy. It is hoped that the site will serve as one of the available guides to better living and as a referral base for those needing further assistance. Congratulations on your decision to make positive changes in your life.