I am the Founder and CEO of BehaviorWorx of Southwestern Pa and a passionate educator, having personal and professional experience working with individuals with special needs across the life span.

I identify as a woman with Asperger's Syndrome and have struggled with social situations, sensory sensitivities, mood swings, and many other things in my life until, at the age of 40, a kind, compassionate, and trusted co-worker took me aside and discussed some of the differences she noticed about me. It was then I realized that I needed to see a psychologist to figure out what was going on. As women often are, I was misdiagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder and after putting together the pieces, I realized that it was more than that. I realized exactly what was going on and what I needed to do to improve my life.

I also have two children, one son, and one daughter. My daughter was born full term and struggled with reflux, sensory sensitivities, picky eating, and vision issues. My son was born at 33 weeks and 2 days and had to stay in the NICU for 52 days because he had severe reflux, was not gaining weight, and had dips in his heart rate during most feedings. My son received occupational therapy services in the hospital and for a period of 3 months after coming home. As he got older, he had behavioral issues as well that included head banging, mood swings, rigid behavior (not wanting to change clothes, wanting his chair to be turned a certain way, etc), picking eating, and sensory issues.

As my children got older, we consulted with a developmental pediatrician and realized that most, if not all of my children's issues were related to food intolerances and gut issues.

My personal and professional experiences have helped me understand that the causes of behavior are often rooted in nutrition, allergies, undetected vision issues, and problems that occur early on in life and I integrate this knowledge when I train and consult educators, mental health, and behavioral health professionals.

I have worked with parents, service coordinators, occupational therapists, physical therapists, speech and language pathologists, nutritionists, behaviorists, teachers, and many other mental and behavioral health professionals to shift their practice to a holistic approach.

I am a licensed behavior specialist, certified infant massage instructor, certified integrative mental health provider, and licensed Brain Gym movement facilitator.

You can find more about my work at www.behaviorworxofsouthwesternpa.com or by scheduling a time to chat at calendly.com/behaviorworxpa