Hello. Are you seeking help, or someone to confide in and help you work through what is bothering you?

Congratulations on taking this first step.

The client/counselor relationship is important to the counseling process. Who you choose is a very important and personal decision, so let me introduce myself.

Counseling

Professionally

Am I qualified to help you? I am a nationally certified and licensed professional counselor with a Master’s degree in counseling. While working in the field of counseling and therapy for over 33 years, I have continued my education as well, earning several certifications. With additional training in very specific areas of mental health, I continue to learn and am well versed in the issues we face today.

I am also affiliated with several professional groups and currently an active member and board member of the New Jersey Mental Health Counselors Association.

I volunteer an hour per week doing Counselors Chat, my radio show at the Hunterdon Chamber of Commerce. The reason for my show is to educate the public on good mental health and to remove the stigma around seeking help for mental health issues. Just as we seek medical advice for our physical well-being, it’s ok to seek help for our mental health.

Personally

I am married to Steve, a Veteran who is also a licensed professional counselor and works in a V. A. Counseling Center. We LOVE to travel. We are also active members in, and on the board of, the 3rd NJ Volunteer Infantry, a 501.c Civil War reenacting unit with the purpose of preserving history and educating the public on the Civil War. I love to write and am working on a novel called Tangled Hearts. I also garden, paint, play piano, cook, and take care of my elderly mother. Our household includes two cats: Mrs. Fuzzywigs and Lady Catherine DeBurg. But life wasn’t always this good…

With years of personal experience dealing with alcoholism in those close to me, I’ve attended countless Al-Anon meetings and the Adult Children of Alcoholics 12-step program. I spent years grappling with depression and suicidal ideation as well as PTSD. It was professional counseling that worked for me.

I am also a strong Christian. With an undergraduate degree in History & Religion, I had considered becoming an Episcopal Priest; however, I felt a greater calling to be a counselor. My education, affiliations, experience and belief in a higher power propels me to help others. As a Christian counselor, I believe this is my purpose.

My Counseling Practice

My private practice offers SAFE and CONFIDENTIAL counseling services in a relaxed setting. I use a wide range of therapies such as client-centered, cognitive behavioral, rational emotive, grief and loss recovery, Imago couples counseling, and the 12-step. Together we look at all aspects of your health and well-being—Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Emotional, and Sexual—and then determine what we need to focus on.

• My office hours are Monday through Friday, by appointment.
• I am an out-of-network provider. Prices are determined in an initial consultation.
• Payment for sessions is due at time of service.
• MasterCard and Visa accepted

Credentials

• Master of Arts in Counseling & Personnel Services, the College of New Jersey, with a Certificate in Alcohol and Chemical Dependency Counseling.
• Alcohol and Drug Addiction Certification from Trenton State College
• Bachelor of Arts in History and Religion, Moravian College, Bethlehem, PA.
• Licensed Professional Counselor, State of NJ
• Board of Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners, License #PC1527.
• Certified by the National Board of Certified Counselors

Affiliations

• The Academic International Counseling Honor Society—Chi Sigma Iota—Alpha Epsilon Chapter
• American Counseling Association
• New Jersey Counseling Association
• New Jersey Mental Health Counselors Association (acting president from 2011-2013)
• Liaison for Hunterdon County Counselor’s Peer Support Group
• Advisory Board for Plainfield Community Outreach

Awards

• American Counseling Association’s Most Consumer-Friendly award, 2012
• Most Informative award from Hunterdon County Chamber for Counselor Chat, 2017

Additional Training

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Anger Management
• Anxiety and Depression Recovery
• Grief and Loss Recovery
• Family and Marriage Counseling
• Brief Therapy for Relapse Prevention
• Incest and Addictions
• Women and AIDS
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy
• American Society of Addiction Medicine and Patient Placement Criteria
• Child Play Therapy
• Imago Couples Therapy
• Ethics
• Cultural Diversity
• Healing the Wounded Warrior

Working Experience

• Somerset Home for Temporarily Displaced Children, Counselor
• The Good News Home for Women, Addictions Rehabilitation, Hunterdon, Chief Operating Officer
• Crawford House, Halfway House for Women, Program & Exec. Director
• Intensive Supervision Program, an alternative to incarceration, Counselor
• Somerset Christian College, Educator
• Division of Youth and Family Services – Counselor
• Plainfield Community Outreach, a 21st Century Program for children grades 4, 5, & 6
• Private Practice since 1999

My Partner

I’d like to introduce Steve W. Roll, MA, LPC, NCC. Steve has his Masters in counseling, is a Licensed Associate Counselor and a Nationally Certified Counselor. He has been employed by the Veteran’s Administration’s Counseling Center for over eight years and is joining my practice.

A few words from Steve:

“Men, are you feeling marginalized by today’s society? Unsure how you fit in? Struggling to understand the emotions you’re experiencing? Want to establish meaningful relationships but don’t know how?

Veterans and spouses (male and female), did you recently leave the service and find yourself having difficulty relating to your family and friends, like you don’t ‘fit’ anymore? Have you been out of the service for awhile and still find yourself troubled by thoughts and dreams of your experiences? Spouses, is your relationship struggling and you don’t know what to do? I can help.

I came to the Counseling profession later in life, with a good amount of real-life experience under my belt. So, I can identify with issues of self-esteem, broken relationships, financial struggles, and life transitions like divorce and job loss. And as a Veteran, I’ve been there. I speak your language, and I get where you’re coming from.

I know that right now it feels impossible. Let me help you overcome the issues with which you’re currently struggling. Together, we can develop insights and skills that will help you climb out of your rut, improve your relationships through better empathy and communication and move forward. You CAN have a healthy and satisfying life!”