Therapists in Oakland, CA

Therapy is a space you carve out with me to reconnect - with yourself, your goals, your life’s meaning, your passion, your creativity, your spiritual path. We all struggle with difficult things at times; they pull us away from who we want to be, or the path we intend to walk in life. I believe relationships are the most important healers we have in our lives – starting with your relationship with yourself! Extending to all your other important and beloved relationships - with family, friends, community, planet, and spirit. No matter where you are, your journey to self-empowerment and joy begins Right Here. I will be there with you.

Do you find yourself at a crossroads or yearning for more? You may be at a breaking point or you may want to make some changes and you don't know where to start. I will ensure a safe and warm environment for exploration. We will move at a pace comfortable for you. Taking the leap of faith into therapy takes courage. We will engage in a process of empowerment to help you feel more centered & grounded in yourself. I work with individuals, couples, children, & families. I am here to listen, empathize & deepen your self-understanding . We will take a look at your inner longings and the parts of your life which may not be serving you.

My ideology is inspired by the juxtaposition of American narratives, originating from the Deep South and Urban Midwest. Growing up in a Pro-Black, Christian Baptist home I learned how gender, sexuality, and white supremacy can greatly affect our culture, happiness and well-being. Early exposure to the mental healthcare system taught me that oppression can be as multi-layered and intersectional as the oppressed, and diagnosis will continue to be an act of oppression if it ignores cultural context, societal phobias, and systemic oppression. For a great number, our mental health is a representation of how we survive our social climate.

I offer counseling for individuals and partners experiencing a broad range of life challenges. And, I have extensive experience in supporting folks as they navigate the following content areas: communication & relationship issues; grief & loss; identity; trauma; sexual orientation, sexuality & sensuality; creativity; systems & lived experiences of oppression; anxiety & fear; depression; co-dependence; addiction; infidelity, betrayal & trust; and inner-child work. I’m sex-positive, queer, and poly- & kink-affirming, and welcome all ethnic & racial identities & positionalities. (For more info: www.noellebraddocktherapy.com)

**Accepting New Clients** Feel cared for and heard, experience a safe and authentic connection, find clarity, heal from a past or more recent traumatic event. As a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Provisional Art Therapist and Mindfulness-based Practitioner, I offer a person-centered, strength-based holistic approach to healing. In addition to traditional talk therapy, I work with the creative mind, this work includes art and expressive mediums to understand how our earliest experiences in life create the implicit, behavioral patterns that we can potentially carry with us for a lifetime.

Therapy provides such a rich opportunity for growth and learning, helping persons to recover from the aftermaths of trauma, abuse and loss, meet the hardships of their lives and thrive. In times like this, with so much anxiety about our collective welfare, it can be an invaluable lifeline. In response to the Coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, we are now offering teletherapy (therapy by phone and online by video) for all our clients, whether new or established. Also called telehealth or telebehavioral health, teletherapy can provide vital care and support to individuals, couples and families.

Bienvenidos/Welcome! I am a bilingual/bicultural Spanish-speaking therapist located in the East Bay area of California. I have been working with children, teens, and adults of color struggling with an array of concerns including anxiety, depression, relationship satisfaction, life purpose, trauma, postpartum depression, and spirituality, related to life transitions, family stress, trauma, and grief. Although my work has focused on the unique needs of minorities and underrepresented individuals, being a member of that community is certainly not a requirement for your personal development.

I am passionate about working with those who struggle with relationships and boundary setting, and clients who struggle with balancing differing sets of expectations due to cultural, physical, or mental factors. I also work with couples from differing backgrounds to deepen mutual understanding and couples struggling through a difficult phase in their relationship looking to increase communication and understanding. I work well with people from diverse cultural backgrounds, immigrant and first and second generation individuals and families, mixed race or multicultural individuals, and those who are struggling with chronic illness.

The pace and complexity of life these days is making it harder and harder to connect to how we are really feeling, and to understand why we are feeling that way. It feels like, too often, we are urged to ignore or push away key parts of ourselves in order to be or do what seems to be required of us. In response to this, the therapy I provide is an opportunity to slow down, to get clear about what we each need in order to feel okay (or to even just remember the ways that we actually already are okay, in the midst of it all), and to move into steadier and healthier versions of ourselves.

I enjoy in working with; self esteem & worth, trauma healing & recovery, body image & body positivity, disordered eating & relationship to body, belonging as our birthright, transforming deep shame into liberation, body & sex shame, relationships and boundaries, anxiety, stress & hyper-vigilance, nervous system imbalances, life transitions & identity, honoring grief, loss & death, life threatening illness, cancer, auto-immune disease, rites of passage, aging, adolescence, menopause, women's empowerment, highly sensitive people & empaths, people pleasers, intergenerational trauma & ancestral healing, mothering & the mother wound.

*ACCEPTING CALIFORNIA, ILLINOIS, AND MISSOURI CLIENTS* Come be seen & be known in a relational space with me, so that you can finally arrive home in yourself. Are you curious if you have experienced trauma, or if trauma may still be affecting you? Have you worked with many healers & still feel stuck in certain places? Have you experienced a spiritual awakening & need to integrate the experience(s)? If you answered 'yes' to any of these questions, then you may be in the right place. Trauma can express itself in PTSD & Complex PTSD symptoms, various types of depression & anxiety, & many other symptoms. Lets get to the root.

Are you stuck somewhere? Did you hit a wall? Do you want to heal an old wound? Restore access to yourself? Cultivate a deeper understanding of the world around you? Explore repeating patterns? Break toxic cycles? Come as you are. Do you want to adjust to the changes in your life? Absorb a loss? Reassess your life goals? Overcome a challenge? Increase your self awareness? Be more present in the moment? Find your voice? Feel more empowered, more vibrant, more whole? Come as you are. I specialize in trauma, attachment wounding, adverse childhood experiences, dysfunctional narratives and toxic relationship cycles.

When challenges and struggles in life arise, you do not have to walk alone. Whether you have experienced a recent life transition, loss, setback, have struggled with mental health or addiction challenges, or, are seeking support to heal from a recent or childhood trauma, I will be honored to guide you to gain control of your life and reclaim your personal power. I have committed nearly two decades holding a safe and empowered space for adults, children, and adolescents to discover their human potential, heal from trauma, and develop the tools to live a life of vitality and empowerment.

I believe that inside each of our struggles there is a choice and it's from this place that we can reconnect to and reclaim our inherent wisdom and power. My intention in our work together is to help shed light on the path to help guide you home to yourself

Bilingual, Culturally Sensitive, Trauma-informed, Relational Psychotherapy. I believe that engaging in therapy is an act of courage because change is by definition radical. An important goal of therapy is to connect to your authentic/creative self as a way to make meaning in times of suffering. Together we will explore your personal, family, cultural, and political history to understand the ways in which your experiences shape how you feel in the world. Whether you are struggling with life transitions, finding/keeping good relationships, or trying to integrate different identities, our work can help you find some sense of cohesion.

My ideal client is anyone—individuals, couples, or families—yearning for a compassionate and culturally attuned therapeutic journey. They face life's challenges with resilience, eager to embrace the vibrancy of feeling "alive." Seeking a therapist who comprehends the impact of social inequities on wellness and life quality, they aligns with my values. Together, we navigate towards the restoration of a beloved community, unlocking the fullness of their lives beyond the burdens. My commitment lies in fostering a therapeutic space where they feel profoundly "seen" and empowered to pursue the desires of their hearts.

We are Bay Area Gestalt Institute (BAGI), a non-profit collective of highly trained marriage and family therapists and associates, providing affordable psychotherapy throughout the Bay Area. We offer counseling to individuals, couples, families, and children. Our work is active, creative and holistic. Our therapists work with a variety of issues including: * Relationship Issues * Anxiety * Depression * LGBTQI Concerns * Trauma * Substance Use / Abuse * Eating Disorders * Spiritual * Personal Growth * Integration of Non-Ordinary States

Psychotherapy isn't one size fits all. It's a unique relationship that develops and responds to your needs, life-experiences, gender/ethnic/cultural identity, challenges and resources. You may be feeling stuck-repeating painful patterns, wanting to make changes but not knowing how. Or you're a survivor of sexual violence and the ways you've been coping aren't working anymore. I meet you where you are and bring my clinical and life experience, deep listening, compassion, acceptance, warmth and creativity. Together we create and draw on the power of a safe, accepting therapeutic relationship to support your growth and wholeness.

You are hurting, or anxious, are considering psychotherapy and whether to trust me to facilitate your healing. My experience with adults, couples and children will support your inner journey and that of loved ones. We will create space for you to contemplate internal, external and relationship challenges. Through an attuned therapeutic relationship, I will help you address internal challenges - depression, anxiety and trauma. Empathically, I help you face external challenges - discrimination, immigration and life transitions. I also support you in navigating relationships, in which your internal worlds connect with those of others.