Working With Me
At the core of my approach with people is the deep belief that healing happens in safe, trusting relationships, and there is nothing wrong with you. You have done what you could to survive with the tools that you had. We can honor your journey, those efforts, and those tools. They got you this far, however hard the journey has been.
As we learn to appreciate the wisdom and beauty in your survival, we can draw from your strengths to help you imagine and begin to create what else could be possible for you.
As we move forward, we can bring in a wide range of tools I can help guide you through. From working with the relationship between therapist and client to build a sense of what safety and trust in a relationship can feel like, to building a sense of safety in your body, to honoring and caring for your inner child.
It’s all about what fits and works for you.
I look forward to meeting you and starting to support you on your next steps toward healing.
Therapeutic Modalities:
- Narrative Therapy - Internal Family Systems
- Somatic Psychotherapy - Mindfulness-based Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - Gestalt
- Strengths-Based Therapy - Relational Therapy
- Solution Focused Therapy - Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT)
My Story
Kia ora, I’m Daniel. I grew up walking the hills and forests of Southern California, U.S. My father was born in Peru to a Tunisian father and a Sicilian mother. My mother was born in California to a Scottish mother and a German Father.
You could say my moving to Aotearoa/New Zealand with my wonderful wife, who is from Ecuador, is me carrying on the family tradition of crossing oceans and cultures.
I have always found myself keenly aware of what others are feeling and how they relate with each other. I found myself offering and being asked for support from friends and family. My first formal training in healing was in massage therapy and craniosacral work.
Then I realized that many of the people I worked with needed more than compassionate touch to support their wellness. So, I went to study psychology and got my Master’s degree in Counseling from Sonoma State University.
In the process, I got training in Somatic and Mindfulness-based therapy from the Lomi Psychotherapy clinic. I also took further training in other therapeutic approaches. After that, I moved on to the YWCA clinic where I received specific training and experience working with domestic violence and sexual assault and abuse.
I feel honored to support people in their healing and to witness the strength, brilliance, and beauty in the wairua of everyone I work with.
