About Bree

Image description: Bree gently smiles in a cemetery. Bree is a fat white person wearing a black baseball cap and a black sweatshirt with a black and grey plaid collar.

My Spiel

Sure, I’ve got a master’s degree in psychology, but helping people was already in my blood. My grandma was a social worker, my mom went to college for child psychology, and I’ve been helping people in a fuck ton of different ways for as long as I can remember. Between my roles as a sex educator, roller derby coach, the friend everyone confides in, and more, I pull from my variety of experiences to help whoever needs it. My personal experiences—especially as a fat person who is neurodivergent and chronically ill—are valuable aspects of my perspective and how I relate to others. So, it’s important to me to recognize that my lived experiences, as well as my professional and academic backgrounds, are all stirred up in a big bubbly cauldron to create the offerings you find here today. 

Fat Liberation 

I’ve always been fat. I was only, like, 3 or 4 years old when I first learned to hate and fear my own body—and finding fat liberation around 18 or 19 changed my fucking life. It improved my body image, my mental health, my self-esteem, and even my perspectives of other people. As a peer counselor, I strive to support other fat folks who are seeking or already living a life of fat acceptance and body neutrality. While a majority of my peer counseling clients are fat, I’ve observed how fat liberation impacts virtually every body, and I’m open to working with anyone who seeks body liberation. 

Mental Health & Self-Care 

I may have a master’s degree in psychology, but my knowledge of mental health and self-care primarily stems from being someone who has bipolar I, anxiety, and autism. My lived experience as a neurodivergent person has given me the understanding and compassion that I don’t get from others who just don’t fucking get it. In my work, I hold space for others to share and process with no judgment. (For real though, I’ve seen and heard a lot. I promise you can’t scare or surprise me, and your secrets are safe with me.) I also offer opportunities to collaborate on reasonable steps towards reaching mental health and self-care goals of any magnitude. 

Tarot Readings

My spiritual practice is a major part of my self-care routine, and one way I engage it is through tarot and oracle readings. Tarot helps me get out of my head and offers me perspective and feedback beyond the walls of my own ego. I always seek direct feedback, looking for tangible strategies for navigating everyday life. I read tarot for others the same way that I read for myself, offering gentle and specific guidance to anyone who needs it. My peer counseling clients are the only folks who can currently access these readings with me, so that’s a fun and special perk of working together. 

PS: I read tarot using UNO cards—yes, really! I teach a free monthly class about how to learn this accessible form of divination, which you can find more about here.

My Resume

Professional Experience

Bree is Helpful AF, 2022-Present 

National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance (NAAFA)

Founder and co-organizer — San Fernando Valley Zine Fest, 2017-2024

  • Created fest and recruited organizers and volunteers

  • Organized annual zine fest alongside team of 5 co-organizers 

  • Facilitated workshops and virtual events

Sex educator and writer, 2012-2020

  • Created educational content about sex toys and sexuality 

  • Provided individual consultation about sex toys 

  • Facilitated trainings about sex toys

Resident assistant — Columbia College Chicago, 2009-2010

  • Responsible for 50+ dorm residents 

  • Provided one-on-one support to residents

  • Hosted regular community gatherings for residents

  • Created and hosted campus-wide events including open mics, drag shows, and a sex education event

Academic Experience

M.A. in Psychology - Antioch University, 2020

  • Specialization: community psychology

  • 1 year in clinical psychology (LMFT track)

    • I left the clinical program for a variety of reasons, including an interest in research and a distaste for the ethics and limitations of licensure. 

  • Thesis: I conducted a 40-person study analyzing positive and negative influences on fat people’s body image, plus everyday strategies for fat empowerment. My study resulted in a qualitative report, as well as the development of an intimate workshop for the empowerment of fat folks as informed by the results of the study.

Trainings & Workshops

Queer Ecology: You are a Collection, 2025

Eating Disorder Harm Reduction 101 with Gloria Lucas, 2023

Cycle of Radical Sexual Acceptance with Mx. Ezra, 2022-2023 

Empowered Witches Summit, 2022 

All-In: Partnering for Fat Representation in Google Marketing, 2022 

Right to Be Trainings

  • Bystander Intervention: How to be an Ally When You Witness Online Abuse, 2022

  • Resilience: This Moment and Beyond, 2022

  • Bystander Intervention to Stop Anti-Asian/American and Xenophobic Harassment, 2021

  • 8 Tools to Mitigate Implicit Bias, 2021

  • Bystander Intervention to Stop Police Sponsored Violence and Anti-Black Racist Harassment, 2021

Lived Experience

Private coven organizer, 2020-2024

12 Step recovery, 2014-Present

  • Does service by sponsoring fellows, taking on service positions, and speaking at meetings

  • Participated/s in committees dedicated to diversity and inclusion, longterm members needs, and fostering creative community within the fellowship

House Open Mic, 2014-2020

  • Organized and hosted a free monthly open mic for LGBT2QIA+ and BIPOC writers and musicians

Roller derby coach and trainer, 2013-2023

  • Developed and facilitated on and off-skates practices

  • Coached and empowered teams during competitive bouts

  • Organized and facilitated business meetings