I graduated with my undergraduate degree in Applied Exercise Science and my master’s degree in Clinical Exercise Physiology, and began working at a hospital in Cardiac Rehabilitation. After a year or so in my career, I found it frustrating that while we could offer services for weight management, nutrition consulting, and behavioral health for stress and depression, we had no clear resources or support for our leading modifiable cardiac risk factor: smoking.

To change that, I enrolled in the Tobacco Treatment Specialist program at UMass Medical School. This is where my passion truly began. For over a decade, I’ve been working with people who smoke—both in the hospital and in cardiac rehabilitation—to help them reach their tobacco goals.

There is powerful new education and research on how to help people quit, but what’s missing is someone to get that information into the hands of the people who need it most: those who smoke. Quitting is extremely challenging, but there are tools, strategies, and plans that can make it more manageable.

I believe in meeting each client exactly where they are. My goal is to fully educate every individual on the options available so they can create a strategic, informed plan that fits their life. I’ve worked for years in behavior change, and I know that changing old habits and routines is hard—but with the right support, it is absolutely possible.