Teletherapy for Berkeley, CA

My name is Alex and I'm excited about the potential of working with you in developing a sense of integration and resiliency in your life. Are you feeling stuck? Dissatisfied in your relationships and/or work? Disconnected from a sense of deeper purpose? Feel that there is the potential for greater richness and joy in life, but it is just out of reach? Rooted in a compassionate curiosity and from a holistic lens, we can unpack the how's and why's of your patterns; gaining insight into your emotions and experiences, and work towards greater self-awareness and well-being.

We live in powerful times, filled with much opportunity and yet so much pressure to succeed that it can be difficult to navigate our personal challenges amidst the demands that come with it. We want to feel connected, whole, and in our purpose, but often feel separate, isolated, and fragmented instead. In order to heal, awareness, compassion and courage are needed to meet the painful spaces and shed light on our shadows, transforming them into opportunities for more presence, fulfillment and joy. I aim to empower the healer within you. As we heal, we serve ourselves and the world around us for the better.

For 25 years, I have assisted people with a variety of addictions, from the exogenous abuse of drugs and alcohol, to the ones that stem from the chemicals already inside the brain, such as sex and love addiction, abandonment patterns, sexual compulsions, gambling, internet, and workaholism. Unlike most psychotherapists, I’m a Board Certified Addiction Specialist, well versed in both abstinence and harm reduction strategies. Unlike most addiction professionals, I am also psychotherapist who also treats the anxiety, depression, and other psychological issues that often manifest after being uncovered through recovery.

Are you anxious, depressed and tired? Are you feeling emotional for no reason? Feeling disoriented and lonely? Questioning everything in your life? I help people to deeply listen inside and let their choices be based on what is true for them. While pain and emotions are part of being human, suffering can be minimized by allowing what is inside of us to be expressed and find acceptance in our experiences. I support you to move through trauma, anxiety, anger and depression to empowerment. Stress-management is part of the work and looking at communication with ourselves and others to have fulfilling relationships.

I've been in private practice for over 34 years in the San Francisco Bay Area working with individuals ,couples and families seeking support for trauma, life transitions, and development. Whatever stimulus propels an individual to seek support, can be an opportunity for each person to engage more fully in their life. The therapeutic process is an organic one that involves a mutual exploration between myself and clients with the client's needs and purpose informing the process. What may seem an obstacle may be an opening when viewed from a different perspective with another,to make a difference in one's mental health.

I have 26 years of experience as a body focused psychotherapist specializing in shock and developmental trauma, attachment and relationship issues. My approach is empowering &compassionate, & gently takes you beyond difficulties into your wholeness. I've been a Somatic Experiencing (SE) Practitioner for 22 years and can help you calm your Autonomic Nervous System as well as processing relational issues, trauma, grief, etc.

I am a psychologist and a certified Jungian analyst. I have been in private practice since 1979, initially as an MFT, then as a psychologist starting in 1989. I became certified as a Jungian analyst in 2010 after seven years of training at the C.G. Jung Institute in San Francisco. It is my privilege to work with many different people, those coping with uncertainties and ambiguities of life transitions, those who suffer a range of painful symptoms such as anxiety, depression, grief, addictions, trauma, divorce, identity issues, spiritual crisis. I value depth, difference and relationship.

Maybe you're struggling with anxiety, depression, relational challenges, or looking for more meaning and purpose. Maybe you're feeling stuck in perfectionism, self-doubt, or a harsh inner critic. I have seen over and over again that therapy can help. Regardless of your circumstances, change is possible. Together, we can get curious about what's happening, identify patterns and strategies that are no longer working, find ways to cope with hard and uncomfortable feelings, and create new possibilities in your relationships and in your connection to yourself.

You may find yourself needing more support due to a relationship struggle or life transition. Maybe you, like many others, are coming out of the COVID years feeling a little lost or uncertain. Maybe you have a big decision to make. My role is to support your process of self-discovery and healing. As a deep listener attuned to you, I will assist you in cultivating your resilience to navigate your life at any stage. Your goals will focus and guide our work toward greater awareness and change. My life experience, training, and openness will support you on your journey toward greater emotional well-being.

As an LGBTQIA empath, intuitive, or artist, you experience this world in a deeper, more complex, intuitive way - including painful experiences of trauma. With so much pain in the world, it's hard to care for your own feelings and needs, let alone heal from your experiences of trauma. I specialize in supporting LGBTQIA empaths, artists, and magic makers to heal from the trauma of oppression, abuse, and sexual violence and reclaim their gifts and voice. To embody their own sacred needs and ways of being. And to find sustainable, empowered ways to integrate empathy, spirituality, community, creativity, and nourished activism.

You are a busy woman with a calendar filled to the brim and a mind racing with thoughts. Soon after you get that rush from checking off a box on your to-do list, panic sets in knowing the list never ends. You are a doer and giver - often going to great lengths to please everyone around you. You try your best but still, it never feels like enough. You fear that if you slow down and pause for a moment, everything will fall apart - even you. You want more balance and ease in your life, but you have no idea where to begin.

We learn to survive and cope with our circumstances in the best way we know how at the time. Therapy offers an opportunity to slow down and get to know what is really going on inside and to learn to listen to your body's natural wisdom. I am interested in collaborating with you to explore where you're feeling stuck, confused or overwhelmed. I can help guide you to discover new, more effective ways of showing up for yourself and in your relationships. My own love of nature and mindfulness meditation practice informs much of my work with clients.

Sometimes amazing things can grow under pressure. Living with stigma - related to a mind that works differently, a body that's unruly or "too much," or a sexuality that doesn't fit behind a white picket fence - asks us to be creative and fierce. The wisdom that can grow here is astounding. But the burden of stigma is heavy, and sometimes it grips us in painful positions. Whether you're feeling exhausted, sick of yourself, or just don't know quite how to relate to other people, therapy with me can help.

I have a particular expertise in working with clients who have diverse cultural backgrounds (e.g. ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation.) I also have a deep association working with artistic/creative type individuals and can address particular issues that arise being an artist confined to a conventional/mainstream worldview.

Are you feeling stuck, blocked, or living less fully than you would like? Maybe you would like to feel more embodied, alive, and confident. Whether it is fear, trauma, or stories we tell about ourselves and others, there are many obstacles that prevent us from thriving. I am here to support you on your journey toward wholeness.

I enjoy working with LGBTQIA+ individuals and community from rural areas, as someone who understands the experience of isolation and judgment. I have a warm, soulful, collaborative, empathic, non-judgmental approach to therapy. My goal is to help individuals find their inner voice and truth, heal from new and old wounds, and repair interpersonal conflict with their loved ones. I work with all genders, LGBTQ+, gender expansive clients. Individual, family therapy, couples therapy, sex therapy. Accepting new clients virtually. I am also accepting supervisees currently registered with the BBS.

Something is calling, beckoning you to go on an adventure. You may feel resistant towards it, receptive, ambivalent, or stuck. You may feel all, some, or none of these things, but you feel pulled by the current of something greater—a longing, a curiosity perhaps, for something different, for wholeness, for a chance to know yourself. You can think of me as a companion accompanying you on your journey. I listen—concretely and symbolically—to stories told/untold, what's said/not said, what's felt/not felt, what's remembered/what's been forgotten. I use presence, honesty, and playfulness to both support and challenge you.

Few, if any, of us grow up in an environment that perfectly fits our needs. As we grow, we adapt to our surroundings in ways that may run counter to our vitality, health, and happiness. By exploring and understanding the underlying emotional and psychological patterns that shape our lives, we are able to develop choice in whether to engage in patterns and habits that no longer serve us. As a psychotherapist, I provide a curious, and compassionate presence, lending my heart and mind to this process of self-exploration and self-understanding.

I am an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist. I work with low sexual desire, infidelity, mismatched desires and needs, erectile dysfunction, delayed or impaired orgasms, ejaculation concerns, LGBTQIA health or curiosity, sexual trauma, embarrassment and anxiety in regard to sex and sexuality. Exploring types of sexual behaviors, relationship configurations and non heteronormative expressions. Singles and couples who may be exploring or approaching issues in alternative relationships and alternative family structures, including ethical non-monogamy, polyamory, kink, living single, co-parenting, and chosen family.