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Education & Licenses

· Bachelor’s degree - Swarthmore College

· PhD in Psychology - New York University

· Licensed Clinical Psychologist in Colorado, Illinois & New York



Therapy Experience

· American Institute for Cognitive Therapy (New York, NY)

· Colorado Center for Clinical Excellence (Denver, CO)

· Private practice in New York City & Denver


Specialized Training

· Extended training in polyvagal theory (PVT)-informed therapy with Deb Dana, LCSW

· Extended training in inner relationship focusing (IRF) with Maureen Gallagher, PhD

Professional Affiliations

· Association for Behavioral & Cognitive Therapies (ABCT)

· Anxiety & Depression Association of America (ADAA)

· Academy of Cognitive & Behavioral Therapies (A-CBT)

· International Assoc. of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (I-ACBT)


Additional Background

· Raised in Nebraska, lived in New York City for over 20 years, in Denver since 2010

· Former diagnostic interviewer for research about suicide (New York State Psychiatric Institute)

· Former ballet dancer and pianist, occasional artist




You truly didn't know it could have been different...
but once you get even a glimpse, change is inevitable. 

- E. Nelson


'It is what it is." 
This understanding is not as simple as it may seem, and is actually very hopeful. 
It expresses a willingness to observe without judgment and ongoingly accept 
what is and what is not within your control. 

- E. Nelson


There really are tried and true tools and techniques to help you 
feel better and manage your day-to-day life well. 

- E. Nelson


Psychological progress is a process of 
unfolding, which never goes backwards. 

- E. Nelson


“In order to change conditions outside ourselves, 
whether they concern the environment or relations with others, 
we must first change within ourselves.” 

– Dalai Lama, December 1994 in 
Mark Epstein’s “Thoughts Without a Thinker” (1995)


“Focusing is at once richly complex and surprisingly simple. It is mental and kinesthetic, mysterious in its capacity to summon buried wisdom, holistic in its respect for the “felt sense” of a problem. An effective method in itself, it is also valuable in conjunction with a variety of psychotherapies…to unblock the creative process and define problems. 
In short, focusing works for any form of ‘stuckness.’” 

– Marilyn Ferguson, November 1980 in Eugene Gendlin’s “Focusing” (1981)


“I will not rescue you. For you are not powerless. 
I will not fix you. For you are not broken. 
I will not heal you. For I see you, in your wholeness. 
I will walk with you, through the darkness, as you remember your light.” 

- A Medicine Woman’s Prayer


“The autonomic nervous system…influences how we live, love and work; it guides the way we move through the world…When we are anchored in regulation, we move through our days with a sense of safety and successfully meet the ordinary challenges of life.” 

– Deb Dana, “Polyvagal Card Deck” (2022)


I promise to do my very best to understand you, to help clarify what it is you want for yourself, to work collaboratively with you, and to use my best clinical judgment and skill in proposing and pursuing treatment approaches and interventions. 

- E. Nelson


Knowledge  +  Experience  +  Willingness to Try + Willingness to Accept Support

turns out to be the formula for navigating most of life's challenges problems

- E. Nelson