Therapists in Highland Park, CA

Everyone deserves a safe space to process and grow and I believe that safety can be in the therapy room. My clients describe me as calm, supportive, patient, and non-judgmental of their views, lifestyles, and aspirations. Social justice, intersectionalism, and anti-oppression values deeply inform my therapy work. I approach all client relationships from a place of cultural humility. I love working with adults who are struggling with anxiety, relationship issues, depression, or life transitions and couples who are interested in deepening their relationship or getting through difficult phases.

As a first generation Latina and trauma sensitive therapist, I create a safe therapeutic space to help my clients work through symptoms of depression, anxiety, PTSD and complex traumas they may feel are standing in the way of becoming their best selves.

Saturday appointments available - - In my practice, I focus on helping people who are feeling burned out — overwhelmed and depleted, whether it’s due to work, relationships, the state of the world or a combination of all of the above. I’ll help you be able to cultivate the positive feelings (joy, strength, connectedness) as well as be able to handle the uncomfortable ones (stress, anxiety, frustration, anger, sadness, numbness). Together, we’ll unpack the heaviness that’s weighing you down, explore your strengths, and then figure out what practices work best for you.

You may've wondered why you couldn't just be happier, more confident, or less anxious. Perhaps you find yourself heartbroken or sense that your relationship is in trouble. You may feel stuck in a career or project with little motivation to move forward. Maybe you're struggling to handle painful emotions or a traumatic past. If left unaddressed, these difficulties may lead to depression, anxiety, or a host of relationship issues that can stop you from creating the life you want.

You feel anxious, stuck, and often made to feel out of control by your own thoughts and fears. Whether you have OCD, anxiety, depression, are in a life transition, or have a history of trauma, you are tired of letting your fears and doubts run your life and relationships. You're discouraged from continuing towards your dreams. You want nothing more than to feel confident in yourself and live a life aligned with your values but you are not sure where to start or worry about finding someone who will actually hear you. You've come to the right place.

Finding the right therapist from a website is difficult, which is why I offer phone or in-person consultations. It takes courage to address challenges such as relationships, personal problems, or general unhappiness. Your success in treatment will depend on your readiness to open up and my authentic presence that will help create a safe space for you. Together we will work on identifying, experiencing and expanding your capacity to tolerate all ranges of feelings. You will become more conscious of your limiting patterns while developing healthy ones as your sense of a genuine and stronger self emerges.

If you are struggling with anxiety, depression, your past, your present, or your future, you don’t have to do it alone. A shift in perspective can profoundly affect how we feel and what we are able to do, or stop doing, in our lives. Talking with someone who is both objective and 100% on your side can help you see things from a new angle and move forward in new ways, with someone who cares standing behind you.

I feel fortunate to do the work that I do, to be trusted with a person's life story, their fears, their hopes, their wants and needs. I do not claim to be the expert on you. You are the expert on you. What I am expert at is helping you explore, discover, and move beyond those things that interfere with you being the best version of you, and how to move closer to making that truth your reality. Reaching out is the first step.

If you've become lost amongst obstacles on your journey, I'd like to help guide you to more happiness by offering suggestions, uncovering unwanted patterns, and leading you from the past to the present in order to heal and evolve, enhancing your happiness. Through changes in perceptions/attitudes and being willing to see situations with a new pair of glasses, you can reach your goals and evolve. My clients report that they enjoy my down-to-earth attitude and humor and my use of Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, TRM, meditation and yoga to treat mind-body symptoms. I work best with clients who are motivated to gain self-awareness and see patterns that are no longer serving them. I give homework between sessions in order to keep the continuity of healing working consistently. I feel very blessed to be working in a field that serves people who are finding their best selves and evolving into the people they want to be.

Are you looking to solve the problem you have been having within your family? I am here to help you get the support you’ve been looking for to improve your relationships. Help with the fights at home about homework. Help getting your child to do what they are told the first time. Help with a transition to a new stage of life. I've always gravitated towards working with youth and young adults with the highest needs because that is where I have seen I've been most effective as a therapist.

Everyone goes through challenging situations in life & while you may have successfully navigated through other difficulties you've faced, there's nothing wrong with seeking out extra support. Therapy can be a tremendous asset to managing personal growth, interpersonal relationships, marriage issues, & the hassles of daily life. While we can't change difficult situations of the past, we can work together to better understand and resolve challenges in your life. By applying a variety of therapeutic approaches we can explore long-standing behavior patterns or negative perceptions that may be holding you back from experiencing a more fulfilling & meaningful life.

There's nothing quite like the security of close connections. When those connections are strained, so is your sense of safety. If you’re like many of us, the past several years of pandemic and political divisiveness shook up so much, we can’t see our world as we once did. “Being yourself” may feel like a tall order if it threatens your relationships. You need a space with another human being whose job it is to know and understand you from a place of curiosity and compassion. A space where you can question your beliefs and get clear on who you are without the fear of being condemned.

Do you ever feel good anymore? You feel like you should be happy- you’re good at your job, you’re a good person, but still… Everything feels so frustrating. The people you love irritate you. People won’t stop asking you for things. Don’t they know how hard things are? Don’t they know that you’re up late at night worrying about how the world is going to turn out? All the news seems to be bad news. You’re struggling to find hope. Even the things you used to enjoy don’t work like they used to. Will you ever feel better again? Will you ever be excited for a new day? Or is this your destiny for the rest of your life?

CORONA VIRUS UPDATE: For 2021 my main focus is to help people affected by the unprecedented affects and after affects of this pandemic. If you read my blog, you will see how this pandemic affected me and my family. In California we saw the largest surge of this virus and every day we were bombarded with horrific news, news interviews with families that have lost loved ones or lost their business, and how the stay at home mandate has affected our physical and mental health. You do not need to feel alone, hopeless, scared, and lost. My personal story and skills bring an awareness and empathy perhaps not understood by many.

Are you concerned about a child or adolescent that is struggling? Are they shutting down and sad? Worried or mad? Are they having trouble functioning at school or with friends? How about at home and with their family? Has something in their life changed? Maybe they need a little more support at this particular time... Therapy can help. I work with individuals of all ages, couples, and families.

I am a strength-based therapist working in Northeast Los Angeles. I welcome collaborative conversations regarding the preferred lives those would like to inhabit, finding myself continually curious about the inherent resourcefulness of my clients. I enjoy helping artists to align with preferred intentions in creativity. Often the trickery of circulated messages around "success" can spell us into forgetting one's values in life. As adjunct faculty at Antioch University Los Angeles, I teach numerous courses including Narrative Therapy In Practice, Human Sexuality, and Group Treatment.

Are you struggling with relationships, life transitions, and/or getting your life where you want it to be? Are you trying to solve all your problems internally but end up going in circles? Do you turn to friends and family yet feel misunderstood? There is incredible usefulness in talking through your beliefs, problems, and feelings with a psychotherapist who has experience and expertise to understand what you are going through and to help create space for change and growth. Beginning therapy is an empowered step for self and to achieve your goals.

My collaborative approach is to uncover the solutions that will best promote healthy and authentic relationships, by increasing meaningful communication, reducing anxiety, and successfully navigating transitions. I work with individuals and couples, and within the dynamic of families and business systems, to build on and enhance strengths.

Every person has inherent creativity and a capacity to thrive. My role is to help connect you to your existing strengths and to help you try out new tools. When words are not enough, we can turn to more creative processes. Art therapy and EMDR are modalities that engage the body and mind, what we feel and think. Both modalities help us not only think differently, but also feel something new and healing.