I earned my Ph.D. in clinical health psychology from Kent State University, completed my clinical internship through the Southwest Consortium Predoctoral Psychology Internship (Albuquerque, NM), and completed a clinical post-doctoral fellowship in HIV Behavior Medicine at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. After completing my training in the Los Angeles area, I relocated to San Francisco, where I spent five years as the manager of the Research Program at the UCSF Alliance Health Project. More recently, I have provided training and consultation in Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, Functional Analytic Psychotherapy, and compassion-based approaches. Behavioral health psychology is often a bit like coaching, with a focus on helping you connect with tools you already possess to live the healthy balanced life you desire. This includes treating insomnia and improving sleep hygiene, finding time for exercise, taking practical steps toward a healthy diet, and finding better things to do with your life than stress. A behavioral focus is practical, and involves finding ways that our loved ones, work, and family can become sources of support and encouragement for the changes we need, instead of obstacles. I believe that the relationship we develop in our work together is a powerful tool to assess and explore where change and growth can occur in your life.

My orientation is science-based – many of the most successful interventions are grounded in cognitive-behavioral therapy and the principles of learning theory. I'm further influenced by acceptance- and mindfulness-based approaches, a personal Zen practice, and the development in recent decades of behavioral therapies that better capture the nuances of daily life, such as dialectic behavior therapy and acceptance and commitment therapy. The direction and goals of treatment are solution-oriented, with specific goals for change. My experience providing psychotherapy and assessment in healthcare settings and with individuals with chronic illnesses has given me a particular passion for working with those living with chronic pain or disease, or the unique strains experienced by loved ones and caregivers of those with chronic illness or grief over those they have lost. I became board certified in Clinical Health Psychology in 2013 by the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP). Board Certification is a credential indicating that my professional work has been rigorously examined by fellow clinical health psychologists, and I have been identified as a specialist.

Matthew and his little friend, Selma, playing at the Sanaga-Yong Chimpanzee Sanctuary