I had the unique experience of growing up in three generations: my mother’s—that of a woman born in 1949— that of my maternal grandparents— and my own. My grandparents primarily raised me early on due to my mother working, and then exclusively after my mother died. Therefore, my understanding of the world women inhabit is twofold. I was both raised traditionally in the pre- and post-WWII tradition—(how to be a wife and mother)—and also on the cusp of budding independence for women (women can work and enjoy life outside of traditional roles).

It's hard for younger women today to imagine a time when you needed your father’s, husband’s, or brother’s signature to get a loan, a credit card, or make a major purchase. I was encouraged to learn shorthand and business skills “in case your husband dies and you need to support yourself and the children.” College wasn’t a consideration unless you wanted to be a teacher or a nurse. My family expected me to marry, have children, and become a stay-at-home mother. I started college out of highschool but didn't finish. I ended up living the dreams of each generation at different times. In between, I often wondered which of the dreams I was pursuing belonged to my family and which were mine alone and found myself wishing for a deeper understanding of the journey I was on, and yet women’s personal physical and mental health challenges were not open for discussion.

During these years the messages about women and women’s issues were loud and clear— whether they were implied or explicit: women’s mental and physical health issues were ‘taboo’ for discussion in polite circles, whispered about if at all when discussed between other women, and it was a generally accepted fact that women suffered from a lack of understanding—both their own understanding of what they were experiencing—and that of loved-ones and healthcare providers.

Women and their mental and physical health symptoms are too often dismissed as being “all in your head.”

When my last two children were old enough to allow for more flexibility, I found myself in need of employment and with a desire to have a career. I completed my undergraduate degree in psychology, summa cum laude, and then immediately completed my graduate degree in mental health social work. My undergraduate senior thesis was entitled: 'Growing into Ourselves: How Changes Women Experience at Midlife Increase the Risk of Anxiety and Depression.' The direction of my professional path was becoming clearer.

Through my own personal experience, as well as my professional experience interning with an older adult population, I began to see the importance and critical need for a woman-centered approach to mental health care that covered the lifespan. This became painfully obvious to me when I searched for additional support during my own transition through perimenopause and into menopause. Despite reaching out through my trusted provider network for resources, there didn’t seem to be a woman-centered practice or practitioner who could provide the space and the experience I felt I needed during this time, or that I wished I had during other critical life transitions. I wanted a compass if you will, or at least someone who could help me find one— and show me how to use it.

During the last years of my experience in community mental health, with adult clients of all ages and genders, the unique challenges and issues women face in their personal lives, as well as the underrepresentation of research on the unique areas of women's mental and physical health, my path became more and more apparent. When it came time to open a private practice, the message was loud and clear: I would open a practice that exclusively serves women.

My personal and professional experience has allowed me grow into the kind of therapist who can provide the type of services I believe women need and deserve.