Therapy for Chronic Pain, Autoimmune, & Chronic Illness in Austin & across Texas

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Working With Resolving Chronic Illness Since 2019

I specialize working with chronic pain and chronic illness, because before I worked supporting folks in this position, I lived it. I spent years misunderstanding, ignoring, and downplaying seemingly unrelated symptoms before they culminated in a years-long flare that led me down the path that brought me to where I am today. 

For years, my symptoms grew in intensity and frequency. In the beginning, flares appeared to reflect typical acute illnesses — similar to a cold, flu, strep, or something else communicable. Being and ER nurse, I tended to ignore and downplay the severity of my symptoms, because I saw what illness could look like in my job, and it was far more severe than what I was experiencing. So, when symptoms would arise, I would go to the doctor and get antibiotics or other medications, but for over a decade, my medical team and I did not see a through line until my symptoms were so severe and out of control that there was no denial, and we finally discovered an autoimmune diagnosis. 

While I initially felt a wave of relief and clarity with receiving a concrete diagnosis from a doctor, I also felt devastated, and I was forced to face the reality of it after more than a decade of denying what was clearly laid out in front of me. As many who find themselves on this path come to learn, this diagnosis was the first of many. I was later diagnosed with 3 more autoimmune conditions and a handful of allergies, as additional symptoms continued to crop up.

Recovery required a myriad of medications including corticosteroids. Thankfully, my body responded well to them, and over the next months as I learned about my diagnosis, changed my lifestyle, and addressed my mental health, my symptoms slowly receded. I noticed specifically that when I felt progress in therapy and I allowed my symptoms to guide me towards what I needed, they would lessen in intensity and frequency. The symptoms I experienced continued to resolve while I tapered down the corticosteroids and worked on my mental health, but I struggled to fully ween off of them, as the flare would return when I fully stopped the last dose.  As a result, my medical team heavily recommended using biologics. Because I saw the change in the symptoms I experienced when I did the work of improving my mental health, I knew that I only wanted to use biologics as an end of the line option. And this didn’t feel like the end of the line.

Eventually, my symptoms decreased enough that I was able to fully ween off corticosteroids, avoid the biologics, and I resolved that years long flare. While the initial medications were invaluable, I had gotten to a point where I no longer needed them, and it became increasingly clear that lovingly tending to my mental health was the primary goal, and not doing so was the origin of my chronic illness. I managed to plant my feet under me, and I found ways to rediscover joy, feel connected, and find support along the way. 

Along this path, I noticed that finding doctors and specialists to support my health was tricky business. As a nurse myself, I was intimately familiar with the medical model: I could speak the language of my medical team, and I knew how to advocate for myself, but I repeatedly encounter roadblock after roadblock. I cycled through so many doctors, specialists, and other clinicians, and although I sometimes felt a fleeting moment of hope, it seemed to slip through my fingers after the appointments would end, and I usually felt worse after seeing most of them. Not because they were bad clinicians or bad people, but because they work in a system that doesn’t understand and isn’t set up for truly healing chronic conditions.  

The single most helpful support I found along the way was finding a therapist who understood my experience and supported me while I looked inward and chose my best path forward, one step at a time. It was a chance to explore my inner world, understand and find perspective in my past, and create the life that I deeply yearned to live.

I’m delighted to share that today not only do I live without chronic autoimmune symptoms, I live with more energy, connection, joy and purpose than I previously thought possible, and I have my dream job: supporting my clients as they find their way through their own chronic symptoms so they too can live the life they dream about.

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Reclaim your life

When we encounter chronic pain, autoimmune issues, or chronic illness, we often find ourselves in a world that tells us that way to address it is to manage the symptoms, which often leads to taking medications. This can be, and often is, lifesaving, and your medical provider needs to be your first stop when you encounter acute flairs of chronic illness. However, if you’ve been at it for a while, then you know that the medications really only keep the symptoms at bay, meaning that they do not address the root cause of illness, which means it is easy to get stuck using your diminishing energy to navigate your chronic issues, going to appointments, trying new diets, finding new specialists, and so on when a new symptom pops up. This experience can be deeply depleting. And I know personally, because I was on this path for over a decade.

In our therapy room, we will explore the patterns and nature of your experiences, how you got to the place you are, and we will create a plan together to update your mindset so you can decide how heal your body. My goal is for you to feel supported, seen, and heard as you embark on this new chapter of growth and exploration. My ask for you is that you come to session with an open mind and ready for change.

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  • Clara

    Clara came to therapy exhausted — she was a new mother juggling a growing business living in a body affected by multiple autoimmune conditions. Together, we worked on recognizing her body's signals, easing the guilt and anxiety around rest and prioritizing her needs, and finding a way to show up for her family and work that worked for her and her family. Today, she enjoys life with far fewer symptoms, and those that arise, she listens to them. She has learned to traverse motherhood, partnership, and business on her own terms, and she reports that she has much more time, energy, and a felt sense of purpose and fulfillment.

    (Composite story, not a specific client.)

  • Tabitha

    Tabitha came to me deeply tired, frequently spinning out about her anxiety, hyper-focused on her some of her “bad” habits she couldn’t seem to wrangle, and she had also been having life-threatening medical problems. During our work together, Tabitha addressed the underlying experiences driving the spinning out and the unwanted habits while reframing her mindset about her behaviors. She confidently took charge of her medical care, which resulted in making decisions that vastly improved her health and need for chronic care. Today, she lives a vibrant life, and no longer deals with the chronic health symptoms she was experiencing when we first started our work together.

  • Henry

    When Henry first arrived in my office, he experienced frequent irritability, chronic back pain, and feeling generally disconnected in his personal and work life. After working together, Henry identified his source of disconnection and irritability with those around him. He now knows his body so well, that if he does begin having pain symptoms, he treats his symptoms as an invitation to understand why the pain is happening in that particular moment, and to take a beat and understand what he needs in order to address it. So, instead of experiencing ongoing, chronic pain, the pain serves as a signal to slow down or make changes.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Yes. I specialize in supporting the whole person living with autoimmune and chronic conditions — not just the diagnosis. As a lupus therapist and rheumatoid arthritis counseling provider in Texas, I understand how unpredictable flares, fatigue, and pain can affect not only the body but also identity, relationships, and day-to-day wellbeing. My approach centers your strengths and resilience alongside the real challenges of managing a fluctuating condition.

  • Absolutely. As a fibromyalgia therapist, I hold space for the parts of this condition that are hard to put into words — chronic pain, brain fog, exhaustion that doesn't respond to conventional interventions, and the emotional toll of feeling dismissed by others. Therapy here isn't about "fixing" anything; it's about supporting you as a human, your relationships, your needs as you navigate your world with a body that seems to have a mind of its own.

  • Yes — I work as a Crohn's and IBD therapist, helping clients process their past, their experiences around the medical system, body concerns, and social changes that often accompany these chronic conditions. We will go beyond symptom management to explore your strengths, how you landed here, and how you want to and need to live your life as you pave your way forward.

  • Yes. Chronic pain conditions like endometriosis are deeply physical and emotional. As an endometriosis therapist, I support clients through medical trauma, dismissive healthcare experiences, grief around fertility or lifestyle changes, and the exhaustion of symptom management. Wellness-focused therapy here means honoring your body's signals rather than pushing through them.

  • You're not alone, and this is exactly the kind of "in-between" experience I work with often. Long COVID mental health counseling supports clients facing new, often invisible limitations — brain fog, fatigue, and grief over a body and life that feel different than before. We'll work together on pacing, self-compassion, and adjusting expectations while cultivating and staying in touch with hope.

  • Yes. While the conditions above are common among my clients, my practice welcomes anyone navigating chronic illness counseling in Texas, including less common or undiagnosed conditions. If you're managing ongoing symptoms, medical uncertainty, or having to learn how to self-advocate on the fly, this is a space for you.

  • Rather than viewing you as a set of symptoms to manage, I approach care from a whole-person, wellness-oriented perspective — one that considers your physical health, emotional wellbeing, relationships, and sense of identity together. With a background in nursing, I bring a grounded understanding of the medical side of chronic illness, paired with genuine curiosity about how you experience your body, your care, and your life.

  • Yes. I provide statewide telehealth therapy in Texas, which means you can access chronic illness–informed care from home.