Horses have always held a special place in my life.  I started riding lessons at the age of 4 years old and still ride (though not nearly as much as I would like) to this day.  My connection with horses has lasted throughout my life.  I have taught riding lessons, led horse camps, and assisted with working horses in training.  As they do, my dreams shifted and I realized that being a horse trainer was not my calling in life.  During college, I changed my major of Equestrian Science to a minor, leading to obtaining a minor in Equestrian Science and a Bachelors of Psychology from William Woods University in 2002.  Following college, horses continued to be a part of my life but my career focus shifted to that of mental health.

My career in Mental Health has progressed over 20 years from working as a residential counselor in a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility with children and youth to Managing a Children's Crisis Stabilization Unit and Managing an Out Patient Community Mental Health Program as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.

During my 20 plus years of experience working with children, youth, families and adults struggling with difficult behaviors, relationships, attachment, self-harm, suicidal ideation and Trauma, I have witnessed time and time again that traditional talk therapy leaves a gap in mental health treatment and does not speak to everyone.  However, I have also been trained in and provided Evidence Based Practices in therapy, including Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavior Therapy (TF-CBT), and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR).  I have witnessed time and time again the power of these and other evidence based practices and fully believe in and support the importance of Research in providing mental health treatment.  I also fully believe in finding what works best with each individual.  

I started training in and practicing Trauma Focused - Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (TF-EAP) in 2021.  I have had amazing experiences and built lasting relationships since starting my TF-EAP journey.  In early 2025, I was presented with the opportunity to create Strides to Connection, LLC and go out on my own as both an Equine Specialist and a Licensed Clinical Social Worker providing TF-EAP.

In my time practicing TF-EAP, I have discovered that I truly incorporate both trained Clinician and trained Equestrian in my work.  Thus, in simple terms, I am Bringing Evidence Based Mental Health Practices to the Barn.