About Debra

Healing Through the Body

From an early age, I discovered that movement could be a lifeline. As a child navigating trauma, food became a source of comfort, but dance and athletics gave me something more—freedom, vitality, and a way to reconnect with my true self. Music and dance became languages I could rely on when spoken words felt out of reach. I learned to express passion, joy, and spirit through movement and performance, creating safety and connection in the process.

This understanding—that the body holds wisdom and healing potential—continues to inform the way I work with clients who may feel disconnected from their bodies or weighed down by past experiences.

Finding Voice Through Creativity

Pouring my energies into dance, musical and experimental theater, mime and improvisation, I felt a fullness that transcended fear, doubt, and shame. While teaching dance, a back injury guided me into new forms of movement, including belly dance and qigong. These practices opened me to the subtle, transformative power of energy and embodiment.

For clients, I bring this creative, mind/body perspective and awareness and enable pathways to self-understanding, resilience, and wholeness.

Transformation Through Faith and Community

My path to becoming a therapist also unfolded through my practice of Buddhism, motherhood, marriage, and deep community involvement. These roles—often complex and unpredictable—taught me the importance of faith, action, and the ability to turn challenges into growth.

Because of these experiences, I understand the pressures and contradictions of balancing personal healing with family, partnership, and community. I help clients who are navigating similar life challenges find their own sense of purpose, strength, and direction.

Education and Professional Training

When my children were in school, I began college with majors in Communications, Journalism and Psychology.   Curious about the struggles and creative aspects of human resilience, I started a radio show where I interviewed the people in our community and then a newsletter in my son’s Elementary school where the students, teachers and family members  contributed their unique talents and ideas.  I also taught an after school creative dance class.  

I attended Kingsborough Community College, Brooklyn College and Emerson College.

While preparing for grad school I brought movement meditation/qigong into assisted living communities and nursing homes.  In addition, I was hired to be part of a national study on Home Daycare focusing on the working poor of rural Western Massachusetts.

Today, I am an IFS Level 2 trained therapist on track for certification. I integrate IFS, Buddhist practice, and body-centered healing approaches into my therapy work. Clients benefit from a therapeutic style that is grounded in both professional training and decades of spiritual exploration embedded in personal lived experience.

Supporting Clients in Their Healing Journey

Because my own life has been full of complexity, I know how isolating it can feel to believe no one could understand your story. As a therapist, I offer a safe, compassionate space for clients to share openly without fear of judgment. I specialize in helping people who are:

• Navigating the impact of trauma and seeking to reconnect with themselves
• Struggling with shame, self-doubt, or the burden of old patterns
• Moving through relationship transitions, divorce, or codependency
• Longing to explore spirituality, creativity, or embodied practices as part of their healing
• Seeking a holistic approach that honors mind, body, and spirit
  

My Mission as a Therapist

I see therapy as a process of rediscovery—of helping people reconnect with the vitality, creativity, and resilience that often feels buried beneath the pain of life’s many challenges. My mission is to walk alongside you with attunement, curiosity, and faith that transformation is always possible.