I’d love to meet in person and hear your story! Shared stories are so powerful. My story involves a lot of the usual things—I grew up in the Church in a happy, faithful family. I met my husband of 25 years at BYU and we got married in the Salt Lake City Temple in 1999. After graduating I was a stay-at-home mom for 15 years and then felt called to dust off my dreams of strengthening families professionally. In 2015 I started a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy at BYU, then went on to complete a PhD. During my doctoral work, my oldest child came out as transgender, which rocked my world and changed the course of my research.
Now, I’m a practicing marriage and family therapist, researcher, writer, presenter, and mother of four children, three of whom identify as queer (so far). My research focuses on LDS parents of transgender and gender diverse children. Through that research I’ve had the honor to hear many families’ sacred stories, and I’m dedicated to sharing with others what was shared with me. I’ve given professional presentations and trainings around the country, appeared on the Listen, Learn and Love podcast, and presented at Lift and Love's GATHER Conferences. I love to work with LGBTQ+ individuals and their families in therapy.