Meet Dr. Tanya

I’m a highly experienced therapist, clinical supervisor, and counselor educator, but I have never fit into any organization or institution for very long. I have always wondered why I do and see things differently from others.  Possible explanations include being neurodivergent, queer, and bicultural Cuban-American. I love learning about different people, identities, relationships, cultures, philosophies, theologies, orienting systems, ecologies, myths, and how they all work together to create a beautiful and terrifying existential mosaic. 

I have worked as a counselor in inpatient psychiatric hospitals, community mental health centers, and private practice in person and online.  I have been a clinical supervisor, mentoring and guiding newer counselors and therapists for over 10 years. I have been a counselor educator for 8 years, and have taught over 50 graduate level counseling courses. I also teach continuing education courses on neurodivergence and religious trauma. I’ve presented original research at national conferences, and collaborated with counseling professionals across the US and internationally. 

I approach counseling with a multidimensional, intergenerational, culturally contextualized perspective. Sure, I can diagnose you with a DSM disorder but I’ll also understand you from many other perspectives and encourage you to build your own nuanced, complex, balanced sense of yourself.  We can go as deep and wide as you choose.  There is always more context to our lives. Read more about my evolutionary counseling philosophy here.

My role is not to decide anything for you, but to be a knowledgeable and compassionate witness to your process, giving you new perspectives and guidance to help you build a life that supports you and the people you love.

Personally, I have moved over 20 times across 9 different states.  I got married, completed my bachelors and master’s degrees, left my childhood religion, and got divorced — all in my 20’s. 

I have traveled to 15 different countries, including a solo trip through South and Central America, and to my maternal ancestral homelands in Cuba and Spain. 

I completed my PhD, became a professor, and then quit academia in my 30’s. The longest I’ve stayed in one place is 3 years. The longest I’ve held one job is 4 years.  I am no stranger to uncertainty, change, and reinvention. 

Life’s a weird, complicated puzzle, and while I don’t have all the answers, I’ve gotten pretty good at finding ways to make sense of it and find meaning. If you’re someone who wants to know yourself and understand yourself, your relationships, your cultural identity and heritage, your belief system, and how they are all interconnected, I would love to go exploring with you.  If you’re ready to get started, reach out to me today.