I grew up in Bavaria, Germany, and studied psychology and philosophy at the University of Munich. I worked as a psychological assistant at the Psychiatric Hospital of the University of Munich with people who had severe forms of mental illness. After my graduation in 1989, I came to the U.S. and continued my studies at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. My dissertation was a philosophical study of the theories of Jacques Lacan, a French psychoanalyst. I always had a strong interest in psychoanalysis, but I also learned other approaches, from art therapy to body-work and existentialism. I have worked in private practice for over 20 years. I also like traveling and gardening. I have strong interests in political philosophy, anthropology, theology, and ethics. I teach philosophy at the California State University of the East Bay.