Therapy for Those Navigating Organ Transplantation

Specialized transplant mental health for patients and their loved ones in person in Broomfield and online throughout Colorado

For wherever you are on your transplant journey…

  • Perhaps you just received a diagnosis, and you are completely overwhelmed, but know that you want to do everything that you can to take care of yourself during this process.

    Therapy can be a vital tool in your transplant journey as a proactive approach to your wellness!

    I can help you prepare for the evaluation process and explore if transplant is the right choice for you.  We can work together to take care of you as you begin your journey.

  • Sometimes you may be encouraged to seek out mental health treatment as part of your transplant process. This is very normal and can help set you up for success.

    Seeing a psychologist who has worked in transplant centers, can be especially beneficial at this point. I have unique insight into psychological challenges that might arise during the transplant process and how best to help. From dealing with the anxiety of the waitlist, uncertainty of yearly re-evaluations, the burdens of dialysis, or even anxiety related to shortness of breath, I am able to blend my clinical experience with cutting edge intervention.

  • Maybe you felt like you have been able to manage ok during the initial transplant process, but you feel the stress building.  

    Therapy can help you figure out how to continue living in limbo.

    I can help you face existential fears, sit with the inherent uncertainty of waiting, and deal with symptoms such as insomnia or pain that may be impacting your quality of life.   I often say that a medical diagnosis and the transplant process is clarifying and may times it can be helpful to explore what matters most to you and re-align your life.

  • Sometimes patients find themselves on my website as they are dealing with the aftermath of transplant. Diagnosis and transplant can feel like a crisis and sometimes people are able to hold it together until the emergency settles.  You may be stuck thinking “now what.” Perhaps you feel paralyzed by fears of rejection, overwhelmed with post-transplant demands, or grappling with survivors guilt.

    Therapy can be a helpful tool to learn how to ride the waves of post-transplant.  At this point, we may also think about what/if any changes you want to make in your life.  Together we can help you rebuild your life to one that suits you best now!

  • As a caregiver, you want to make sure you are doing the best you can for your loved one, but you may feel the pressure building. Navigating the transplant process, or any chronic illness for that matter, takes a toll on caregivers. 

    An essential part of being a caregiver is taking care of yourself, so that you can continue to show up in your caregiving role. 

    Our work together may explore the practical (how can we lighten your load, learn to ask for help, think creatively about solutions).  However, therapy can also be a place where you talk about your own fears and worries without concern for how this may impact your loved one.  Often caregiving therapy will include grief work as you may be mourning the changing relationship. 

    Ultimately, I see my role as helping you to take care of yourself during this impossibly difficult time.

  • Perhaps you are interested in considering living donation, but feel unsure if it is the right choice for you. Maybe you have been turned down by a transplant center, and are struggling with the emotional fall out.

    These issues are very sensitive and it can be helpful to have someone not connected to your potential recipient to process your emotions.

I have experience working with patients and families undergoing kidney, liver, intestinal, multi-visceral, lung and heart transplants, as well as living kidney and liver donors. In my oncologic work, I have also worked with stem cell transplant patients. I completed an internship in transplant psychology and was hired on as an attending psychologist at Henry Ford Health System Transplant Institute in Detroit, Michigan. In this role, I developed a robust renal and intestinal transplant psychology program. I had the honor of serving on the Executive Committee of the Psychosocial Community of Practice for the American Society of Transplantation from 2019-2021. I have been an invited speaker for national organizations and have presented and published award winning clinical research in this area.

As an expert in Transplant Psychology,

A woman with long blonde hair smiling, wearing a dark blazer and a blue blouse, sitting outdoors on a stone surface with greenery and trees in the background.

You may be wondering how this expertise translates to your experience?

I know cutting edge interventions to help in transplant related distress. I have the clinical knowledge to understand psychological effects of different treatments and how to mitigate these challenges. Having worked as a transplant psychologist within a transplant program, I often understand what might be happening behind the scenes and how best to navigate it. When you work with me you won’t have to explain the transplant process to me, I already know. 

It is not your job to educate me. It is my job to support you during this time.