Tori is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and completed her education at the National Catholic School of Social Service at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. Prior to her completing her Master of Social Work, she was conferred her Bachelor’s degree in Theology from Catholic University and also completed a Certificate for Pastoral Ministry. Tori previously served as a clinical instructor in the Department of Psychiatry at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, co-facilitating a course for medical student cohorts focused on professional development and assessment skills. She also holds a Board of Oncology social worker certification and is a licensed psychotherapist in Virginia.
During her career in outpatient oncology, Tori advocated and walked alongside many families through the process of diagnosis, treatment, end-of-life, and managing grief. Individuals suffering from chronic illnesses are often overwhelmed with numerous challenges, including family system dynamics and the tumult of intense and fluctuating emotions of fear, anxiety, depression, anger, and anticipatory grief. These challenges also raise existential questions about the meaning of life and personal faith. Tori’s experiences as a therapist have inspired her counseling style, which creates space for clients to process crucial questions about themselves, others, and the world without judgment.
Tori’s counseling approach uses solutions-focused, cognitive-behavioral therapies, and IFS with a foundational perspective informed by attachment theory and family systems relationships. She specializes in clients over the age of 18. She is very passionate about counseling young adults who are suffering from disabling anxiety, depression, and grief, or otherwise needing counsel due to chronic illness, caregiving responsibilities, end-of-life issues, or spiritual distress.
Tori has completed training through the Enriching Communication Skills for Health Professionals in Oncofertility (ECHO) program from Moffitt Cancer Center and Sensitive Practice Training through Mount Sinai Health System. She has also completed basic training for EMDR and is pursuing certification. She has presented lectures on spirituality, the importance of self-care for those with chronic illness, how to tell the children about cancer, and how to support the mental health of cancer patients and their caregivers going through CAR T-cell immunotherapy treatment.
In her free time, Tori enjoys exploring coffee shops, farmers’ markets, and restaurants around Fredericksburg with her husband and children. To decompress, she loves to watch her chickens from the back porch with her dog, Hunter.