Therapists in 94612

Connection, trust, and vulnerability are foundational to a therapeutic relationship. Therefore, as your therapist I seek to establish a warm, confidential, and compassionate atmosphere where you feel seen and heard for who you are and where you are on your path to healing and personal growth. My approach is to encourage and support you as we work collaboratively toward your goals. I am 12-Step friendly and for those who are interested in incorporating spirituality, I offer faith-based counseling as well.

I take an integrated, holistic, strengths-based approach to therapy. Over the past 10 years, I have worked with patients/clients and families of every age and myriad backgrounds. My style is client-centered and adaptable. I believe that you are the expert in your own life and have the tools to meet your goals - my job is to partner with you in applying evidence-based practices to enhance your own toolkit and improve your quality of life.

I have been working in the field of mental health for the last 21 years and in addiction & recovery for 11 years. I also have a special interest in working with developmental trauma and codependency issues. After having worked in “brick and mortar” outpatient substance use and mental health clinics, I have been working in virtual therapy in addiction for the last year and a half. It has been exciting to see how virtual therapy has broken barriers for clients, enabling them to get the care they need in the most accessible ways possible.

I am a warm and compassionate therapist that strives to provide a safe place where clients can feel comfortable expressing their most vulnerable thoughts. I believe in empowering and challenging my clients to reach their goals. As a therapist, I work collaboratively with clients in recognizing the change they want, identifying the obstacles that are holding them back, and creating a plan for change.

I view therapy as a very human process, as well as a very sacred one. While I am theoretically grounded in narrative and postmodern practices, I believe in using an integrated approach including Solution-Focused therapy, Positive Psychology, Motivational Interviewing, Existential-Humanistic Therapy, Family Systems, client-centered therapy, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. I believe that positive outcomes stem from working collaboratively with clients to build trusting relationships while attending to every person’s unique needs.

Welcome to your new journey! This is about you—your goals, your rhythm, what works best for you. Being here means you’ve decided to begin the process of assessing what is working and what is not working in your life, to take stock. We all have barriers that can be challenging to navigate, and can make us feel anxious, depressed, discouraged and lacking balance. I approach each client with an open and compassionate mind, listening to your concerns and struggles. I help you connect the dots and understand how to shift negative and destructive patterns of behavior to ones that support a better quality of life.

My background is in Cognitive Behavioral, Solution Focused, and Trauma Informed Therapy. I have extensive experience working with clients with severe mental illness, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and developmental delays. My life’s work is about helping others improve their lives and making lasting changes toward wellness. My specialty areas include working with symptoms of depression, anxiety, grief and loss, anger management, family dynamics, and stress management.

I use an eclectic style that I have formed over many years of working with adults and children experiencing health traumas and family transitions through foster care, etc. I often start with crisis intervention and prioritize starting where the client is. I provide feedback and suggestions and motivational interviewing. I also have experience working with harm reduction models for substance abuse intervention. I often use Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR) to help clients with self-esteem, shame, and PTSD symptoms.

As a therapist, I believe in healing as a community and working with Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color (BIPOC) to help address the impact depression, anxiety, and trauma have had on our lives. We are all deserving of being heard and valued, and to live a fulfilling life. Yet, somewhere in history, in society, in our families, and within ourselves, a different narrative may have been created—a narrative that’s prevented us from recognizing our worth.

I take a supportive, collaborative, and solution-focused approach to psychotherapy that uses effective and evidence-based treatments to help my clients change their current relationships with difficult thoughts and feelings. Together, we will work on identifying and freeing you from the ineffective patterns that have been keeping you stuck while you actively take steps towards a more meaningful life.

Asking for help can be difficult. Realizing you need to make a change or “unlearn” some habits and ideas that are not serving you well can be a bold, brave move. I teach individual and couples skills to help them through overwhelming feelings and make lifestyle changes to interrupt those destructive cycles. Whether you need to process traumatic thoughts or knock down those mental barriers that have been holding you back from your own personal goals and relationships, I would like to help you explore those needs.

My style of therapy is client-centered. I want to know who the person is that has chosen to come to therapy to improve their life. Clients can describe the areas of their life that they want to improve, and as these are recorded, individual therapy goals are created. This process is possible because I am often described as a master listener. Once the goals for improvement have been established, a game plan is able to be created. My unique background includes anxiety containment, trauma resolution, and resilience creation. Each client has strengths to build from to create a more effective way of thinking about the issues.

I strive to practice with a warm, down-to-earth approach grounded in research-backed interventions. I like to use examples from my own life to demonstrate the therapeutic skills I teach, and work to get to know my clients to tailor treatment to each person’s specific needs and therapy goals. I have two main promises to all clients: 1) I will always use empirically-validated interventions and 2) I will never ask you to do something that I would not do myself. My primary treatment modality is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) because it has a large body of research for a broad range of mental health conditions and stressors.

Sometimes being human is just plain hard. I work collaboratively with you to assist in utilizing your strengths to get through those rough patches. You are unique in your experiences, and I draw upon multiple evidence-based therapy techniques to explore and create an individualized plan that is solution-focused and works for you. I create a safe space that fosters personal growth and allows you to feel heard and understood. We are all human, and sometimes we just need a little extra help to make it through.

Many of the people I work with come to therapy because they are feeling stuck or overwhelmed, seeking relief from anxiety or depression, needing support as they adjust to a change in their life, or wanting to develop a better understanding of themselves. While we don’t have control over some circumstances in life, we can work to optimally navigate what comes our way. My goal is to create a non-judgmental and supportive space for exploration and change and to help my clients improve their sense of well-being.

My approach to therapy is down to earth, warm yet direct. My primary task is to get to know you, your challenges, strengths, and goals so that together we can find ways to build more joy into your life. I find it helpful to work with clients to understand lifelong patterns and also to seek out specific ways to experience personal growth.

I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who approaches therapy with a trauma informed and culturally sensitive lens. I have been a resident of Los Angeles for five years, and in 2018 I earned my Master of Social Work degree from the University of Southern California. Since graduating I have worked extensively in community mental health settings with adults diagnosed with substance use disorders and severe and persistent mental illnesses, as well as survivors of domestic violence and sexual abuse.

I am a licensed clinical social worker who specializes in trauma, PTSD, and mood disorders. As a therapist, I work with you to help you identify your desires and empower you to make those positive changes in your life. I work with individuals, families, and couples. I have an approach that is compassionate, direct, and non-judgmental to help create an environment where you feel supported in your counseling journey.