There’s nothing to fix: You’re not broken.
I'm not in the business of condemning: the lying, cheating, drinking, and so forth. The things that others, and perhaps you yourself, use as evidence that something is fundamentally wrong with you. That's not the case. These things come from a heart that feels its pain too deeply, to where it's colored your judgement and led to mistakes. That's not deplorable, that's human.
So what to do? You’re not condemned, but you’re not off the hook either. The question isn’t “what’s wrong with me”, rather, what am I doing that’s hurting myself and others, and more importantly, why? Speaking as someone who's been poking around in my heart and soul for the past decade through therapy and meditation, it's very tempting to just point the finger outwards: 'It's society, the political climate, my family, spouse, supervisor' and so on. And perhaps they're less-than-ideal, who knows, but it's not that important. The real question is why must you constantly be at war with everyone around you. They do what they do, I want my peace. That's not an invitation to withdraw and drink in your room, rather, if every room you walk into is on fire, maybe you're the one setting them.
The worst thing you can do is deceive yourself — bargain, distract, distort — when every fiber of your being is telling you something needs attention. People do it until their very last breath. Ask yourself: will you be happy having lived that way? My favorite TV show is The Sopranos. In the first episode, the main character is about to get an MRI and says to his wife, "What if it's a brain tumor?" She responds: "What are you gonna not know?"
Background
I enlisted in the Air Force right out of high school, served from 2015 to 2019 as a Medical Laboratory Technician. That was my first real exposure to healthcare. Some of what the military instilled in me — the work ethic, the directness, showing up early and taking things seriously — I haven't been able to shake, and don't particularly want to.
After my enlistment I did my undergraduate in New York, then spent a year living and practicing at meditation centers across Europe and India before coming to Florida for my master's at UCF. That year shaped how I think about what therapy is actually for. Not symptom reduction. Not optimization. Something closer to learning to carry your life — the suffering included — without being crushed by it.
My clinical internship was at a residential addiction treatment center. That experience clarified something important. The work there was heavily manualized, structured protocols, scripted interventions, formats designed for throughput. I understood the logic. I also watched it miss people. Real healing doesn't come from a script. It comes from looking closely at what's actually driving the behavior, which usually lives somewhere the client hasn't looked in a long time. That's what led me to open my own practice.
How I got here
What the work looks like
Therapy with me is steady, direct, and collaborative. We're not going to do worksheets or practice thought-stopping techniques. We're going to talk about what's actually happening — the patterns, the history, the stuff that keeps showing up no matter how many times you've tried to move past it.
That work requires going into some uncomfortable places. Anger, guilt, regret, self-loathing — things that got shut away for good reason. But they don't stay put. They keep influencing your relationships, your decisions, your baseline mood in ways that are hard to trace until you actually look. When you do look, and when those things reach their natural conclusion, they lose their grip.
The work takes time, and it’s not easy. The alternative is to keep running in the same circles, wondering why things aren’t getting better.
I earned my Master's in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from UCF and practice as a Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern under licensed supervision (Edliz Vazquez, LMHC). Intern status means your work gets two sets of clinical eyes, not one. My background is in addictions counseling, with my internship completed at Aspire's Men's Inpatient Addiction Center.
Training & Practice
Who I work with
Depression & Anxiety
Depression is rarely what people picture. It's less often sadness and more often numbness, months passing in a flat, hollow state where even the sadness would be a relief because at least it would be something. Anxiety, similarly, is usually a reasonable response to circumstances the human mind was never built to handle. The work here is less about managing symptoms and more about understanding what's underneath them.
Addiction Counseling
A significant part of my work involves addiction , understood not as a moral failure but as a way of relating to relief, escape, or control. Therapy focuses on how these patterns formed, what’s underneath the addictions that’s so unbearable and what it’s costing you. The goal is enough self-understanding that change becomes possible without constant willpower.
Veterans
I work with veterans navigating transition, identity shifts, emotional numbing, substance use, or difficulty reconnecting after service. I approach this work with respect for both clinical training and lived experience and without the assumption that your military background is a problem to be processed.
Working with men
Men often come to therapy carrying problems they've never said out loud to anyone. The work here isn't about fixing or optimizing, it's about understanding what's actually driving the patterns that keep showing up: in relationships, at work, in how you deal with pressure or failure. This is a space to be direct about what's happening without performing competence.
Outside the office
DOG
I have a standard poodle named Broccolini. He is both the cutest, and the silliest dog in Central Florida.
Languages
I speak four languages: English, Russian, Spanish, and Italian. I’m working on a fifth at the moment, Dutch
Rock Climbing
If ever there is a hobby I recommend for anyone and everyone it’s rock climbing. Not only is it great exercise, it’s also amazing for your mind and confidence, as well as a great way to make friends and meet people.
Meditation
I spent a year involved in serious meditation at various retreats across India and Europe, and continue to maintain a daily practice. It informs a lot of work as a therapist.
If any of this resonates, reach out.
Life’s too short to not try
BEFORE YOU REACH OUT
Practical Details
Location: In-person, Orlando / Baldwin Park, virtual available through FL
Format: Individual therapy only
Approach: Psychodynamic, depth-oriented, counseling in Orlando
Payment: Private pay (sliding scale may be available)
Specialties: Depression, Anxiety, Addictions, Veterans, and Men’s Issues