About Me

I was born in Belgium, the oldest of nine children.

After my degree in Pharmacy, I obtained my license to perform medical analyses. I owned a private medical lab in Brussels and managed the consultations of a group of medical doctors and professors from the University of Leuven.

In 1985, I moved to the US with my husband and two children. I became an active volunteer in local schools.

Trained and licensed as a psychologist in California, I work with children, teenagers, adults, elders, couples, and families since 1993.

An important aspect of my work is helping people, particularly bereaved mothers, to deal with loss. I have extensive training in this area. I also lost my beloved six year old son in 1978, which means that I have dealt first-hand with the devastating trauma of losing a child.

In addition, I wrote my doctoral dissertation, Interventions for Bereaved Mothers, about mothers who had lost a child. My findings reflected how this incalculable loss affects the couple's relationship, the mother's relationship with her surviving children, and her changed view of her life and work. One important conclusion of my research pointed out how essential it is to allow the surviving siblings to grieve and to provide them with the professional support they need.

I offer tri-lingual counseling (French, Dutch, and English) for multinational families who are facing the challenges of integrating two or more cultures. An immigrant myself, I enjoy helping people with the stresses of fitting in, understanding the differences in cultures and religions, and making friends in a new environment.

Memberships and Associations:

2002 - present: Marin Association of Psychologists.
2002 - present: California and Marin Associations of Marriage and Family Therapists.
2013 - present: The National Registry of Marriage Friendly Therapists.
2002 - present: Committee Member of Human Richt Watch Inc. Northern California.

Degrees:

Pharmacist degree and license to perform Medical Analyses in Belgium.
2000: Ph.D. in Psychology.
2002: Child Therapist. The Child Therapy Institute of Marin.
2005: Hakomi Therapist.
2007: EMDR Certificate.
2008: Certified Somatic Experiencing Practitioner.
2014: Bodynamic Therapist.
2014: Emotional Focused Couples Therapist.