I am a psychotherapist who brings both lived experience and in-depth clinical training to my work. As a Pilipino immigrant and longtime New York City resident, I have had the privilege of working across the city’s public health landscape, from community health clinics and high schools to advocacy efforts within city systems. Alongside my clinical practice, these experiences have given me a deep understanding of the social determinants of health, and how factors like race, gender, sexuality, migration, class, zip codes, environment, and systemic power shape mental and physical well-being at both individual and community levels.

I am passionate about work that connects personal experience with broader social realities. In therapy, that means holding space for honest conversations around mental health, sexual health, identity, inequality, and diverse trauma experiences such as childhood violence, family separation, sexual violence and other forms of interpersonal harm. I approach this work in ways that are grounded, accessible, and culturally responsive. Central to my practice is a deep respect for people’s dignity and humanity, alongside a critical awareness of the oppressive systems we navigate. Being trusted with a person’s internal world is sacred to me, and I approach that responsibility with great care and accountability.

Having navigated predominantly white institutions and lived across cultures, I understand the complexity of identity formation, belonging, and survival, especially for people of color. While therapy can seem like a personal or individual journey, healing does not happen in isolation. Healing is deeply collective. Our stories are shaped by family, community, ancestry, and the legacies we carry, both visible and unseen.