Buddhist Therapists in Haight-Ashbury, San Francisco, CA

My practice focuses on issues of self-esteem, relational intimacy, shame, personality disturbances, anxiety, depression, trauma, and life transitions. I work relationally and dynamically with a present-centered approach on issues as they are currently manifesting but with an eye to how they reflect deeper structures of clients' personalities and values. Therapy is not focused on fixing things, but on relaxing patterns of thinking, becoming more flexible in communicating emotion, building resilience, and being able to be more creative and trusting of oneself and others.

Let go, let in, and embrace - I believe these three steps can be the hardest, yet, with compassion, they can be the most life-giving and beautiful approaches to human life. It has always been my greatest pleasure to assist clients in the process of letting go, letting in, and embracing life more intimately. Clients I work with include individuals seeking to transform impacts of trauma or loss, relieve burden associated with hoarding or clutterring, learn more about self-love and love for and with others.

Are you looking for therapy to support & cultivate the wisdom of your whole being – mind, heart, body, and spirit? Would you like your challenges to be doorways to personal transformation?  You may be coming to therapy feeling overwhelmed by life transitions, relationship challenges, depression, anxiety, grief, or loss. You may want to heal old trauma, change negative thought patterns, and break free of self-doubt. Or you may be ready to work towards deeper personal and spiritual growth. I support clients with these and many other issues in a warm, nurturing, non-judgmental way, informed by many years of experience.

I help guide creative, motivated, open, and spiritually-minded individuals on their journey to reconnect and reintegrate with their true selves. It can be difficult to manage (or even face) all the feelings that come with depression, anxiety, life transitions, trauma, or cultural identity. Perhaps you're feeling lost right now, but you just know that there's a path and a purpose specific to you. There is a way to feel aligned in all areas of your life, and to live in true fulfillment and joy!

Feeling stuck in life, work or relationships? Living too long with anxiety or depression? Struggling with grief or trauma? Perhaps you just want to live a more joyous, lively and value centered life. Our needs often overlap between personal growth and in-depth psychotherapy. Working from the here-and-now, I have been assisting people enrich their lives since 1978.

I help people to live the life they dream of living.

Are you ready to up-level your self understanding? Wow, navigating life and relationships can get confusing and overwhelming so quickly! It is my pleasure to help turn the tensions and pain you're experiencing into opportunities for growth and expansion. If you're ready to make changes and welcome in new ways of being, now is the time. I work with individuals, couples, and groups. We will find the nourishment within the pain while not losing track of what feels good...laughter is not uncommon in my office. If you are interested in working in a group, check out IRL Men below.

I strive to facilitate a reflective and explorative environment where the unbearable can be held and truth can be spoken. Multicultural and bilingual elements of my identity, and a history of enduring ethnic discrimination and immigration, significantly inform how I listen to my clients, think through trauma and fragmentation with them. Unconscious repetitions of aversion, clinging, and reenactments of familiar/familial ways of being bind us in suffering. Through psychotherapy, rigid frames of being can be deconstructed and psychological space can be reclaimed for creativity, desire and becoming.

I have openings for adults of any age who seek a powerful mind-body-spirit approach to healing the pain of trauma, anger, anxiety, depression, interpersonal challenges, and stressful life events. I'm a great fit for those who prioritize personal or spiritual growth (including those in 12 step recovery), and are excited to participate in a deep, collaborative therapeutic process. It is important to me to support and create a safe space for queer and trans clients, as well as individuals in ethically non-monogamous relationships.

I combine LENS Neurofeedback with ancient wisdom, warmth and caring. Are you longing for someone positive to talk to who cares and understands? Someone who has experience with anxiety, ADHD, head trauma, PTSD, depression and finding your place in life and love? I can hold your issues and teach you mindfulness which brings happiness and relief. Days, evenings, some insurance.

Something is getting in the way of living the life you want to live. You want to be professionally successful, have good relationships with friends and family, contribute meaningfully to the world and even have some fun. Instead you may be suffering a barrage of negative thoughts about yourself, sabotaging work or relationships or feeling unbearably anxious. I can provide a supportive, respectful relationship where you can face these difficult issues. I have helped many people to curb self/other destructiveness, improve relationships and have a more successful work-life while learning to be more kind to themselves and others.

Crises, transitions, and old patterns that no longer serve you can be daunting when you try to navigate them alone. I work to support you in discovering what you need and want in your life right now. I offer a kind, nonjudgmental space. In individual therapy I specialize in anxiety, managing difficult life situations/transitions, and exploring & establishing healthy boundaries. My work with couples is primarily informed by the Developmental Model of Couples Therapy, which holds that the relationship (the "couple bubble") is one that evolves through natural stages, each stage with its own challenges and opportunities.

In addition to working extensively with anxiety issues, I specialize in helping clients improve their relationships with their partners/spouses. I wholeheartedly welcome both straight and LGBT clients into my practice. I often tell clients that everything makes perfect sense (ie. the problems they share and how they react), and all we need to do is find the right pieces of the puzzle to help them understand. It is from this understanding that relief and solutions arise. By truly understanding what anxiety is and isn't, we learn how to navigate it so it doesn't control our lives.

Wellbeing is our birthright, though it may not always feel like it. Like cement over the earth, years of social conditioning and trauma can cloud our innate vitality. We may notice habits of stressing against life's challenges, or feel caught in patterns of thought or behavior that we know deep down don't serve us. Moving into harmony with life as it unfolds and awakening inner resources of wellbeing is possible for all of us is, regardless of identity or condition.

Are you struggling with anxiety, depression, feeling unmotivated, burnt-out, or struggling with your intimate relationships? I work with clients wanting to change habitual and painful patterns such as self-criticism, guilt or shame, poor boundaries, difficulties in romantic relationships, issues with communication, or struggle to maintain a healthy work/life balance. I help you to see your personal challenges with greater clarity and compassion.

You might have an idea of how you'd like things to be different, but need a little help with knowing how to change. Maybe you are experiencing negative thoughts and overwhelming feelings, perhaps struggling to enjoy your relationships or are burning yourself out at work. You'd like to feel more at ease with yourself, more self-assured, and better able to get through a day with optimism about the future. It's easy to get stuck in certain mental, emotional, or behavioral patterns, and together we can untangle what is holding those patterns in place.