I started my private practice with one goal in mind: to give back to my community.

My identity as counselor is informed by my personal and professional experiences. By prioritizing the needs of my clients, particularly clients with marginalized identities, I can work to give back to my community and find ways to support their needs. My work of promoting equity and fighting for social justice extends to every aspect of my career as a mental health counselor and counselor educator. I have an ethical responsibility to recognize the impact of systemic oppression on my clients.

As a counseling doctoral student, I had the pleasure of listening to Dolores Huerta, a Latina civil rights activist, who was one of the keynote speakers at the 2018 American Counseling Association (ACA) Conference. She spoke about the important role that mental health professionals play in enhancing mental well-being in communities, advocating for social justice, higher education, and inclusion for our clients, fostering cultural competence, and embracing human diversity. At the end of her speech, I had to opportunity to yell, “Si se puede!” which means “Yes, it can be done!” with her standing ten rows in front of me. As a Latinx, female, clinical counselor, I continue to be inspired by her words. I recognize that although I hold marginalized identities, I also have the unique privilege to create real, systemic changes within the counseling field.

Although I am still embracing change in my life and continuously learning more about the world and who I am, I do believe that my past experiences have influenced my view of the world as well as my identity as a counselor. I grew up in the border city of El Paso, TX and my parents have taught me to value relationships with family, friends, and community members. I am proud of my Latinx cultural background and my community and celebrate Mexican and American traditions. I have been taught to be respectful, hardworking, and honest. I believe that all people should be treated with kindness and care. Since I lived in a low-income neighborhood (“El Barrio”) and attended schools that had limited resources, I had to learn to be resourceful, seek mentorship, and work hard in school. My parents encouraged me to pursue my career aspirations in higher education and as a first-generation college student, I had to be dedicated and overcome adversity in many instances. Thus, I value resiliency, empathy, responsibility to self and others, passion, resourcefulness, preparedness, teamwork, fairness, humility, and open-mindedness.

Furthermore, I consider myself to be an introspective person and, in the past, I have had experiences in which I engage in negative self-talk or ruminate about the negative aspects of situations. However, over time I have learned to be kinder to myself, appreciate what I do have in life, and be more optimistic. My family has taught me that no matter how many times I hear negative messages about myself, my culture, my family, or any other part of me, what is most important is what I think about myself.

In addition, due to the systemic barriers that I have faced, my mentors have urged me to advocate for myself. This has instilled the passion to advocate with communities to enact social change that can dismantle systems of oppression that continue to negatively impact marginalized communities.

These are the core values of my private practice.

“Si Se Puede!”