Relational Therapists in Downtown, San Jose, CA

I see us each born with a sense of ease, a sense of knowing that we are loved and worthy. Life sometimes challenges us with more than we can manage. We endure events and experiences that feel like cuts and bruises and we have to find ways to navigate threats to our well-being. Sometimes these cuts feel so deep that we’re not able to easily heal and we cringe in pain each time someone, knowingly or not, touches one of our open wounds. The pain can be unbearable and until we mend and heal the source of the suffering, the symptoms may persist in the form of physical, emotional or spiritual pain.

Many people come to therapy to resolve problems in relationships, manage stress related to work and family, to learn how to adapt to minor and major changes in life, or simply to enhance one’s sense of self. I believe that clients are the experts in their own lives, and that my job as a therapist is to guide clients in resolving their issues by providing a wide variety of cognitive behavioral and mindfulness tools and techniques that can easily be applied to daily life and that will alleviate suffering in a relatively short period of time.

I do believe we are relational beings, and health can be cultivated in intentional, honest, and reciprocal relationships that respect and reveal our inherent dignity. Relationships with others and ourselves hold great promise and power, they can also be the focus of our pain as we move through life. The therapeutic relationship we build together acts as a staging ground and microcosm to help you renew the relationships you have with yourself and others in life. To that end, I endeavor to help you see what may be driving you while also reflecting on what uniquely reveal in your relationships and looking to increase capacity for joy.

I provide trauma-informed therapy grounded in principles of relational attachment, existential psychotherapy, feminist multicultural psychotherapy, and harm reduction. My practice is affirming of neuro-, sexual, gender, and relational (monogamy, non-monagamy/polyam, kink) diversity. I predominantly work with queer and neurodivergent adults.

I am an endorsed infant family early childhood mental health specialist. I provide family counseling and consultation for parents, teachers and therapists of young children. I also support teens and adults who are grappling with issues of meaning and purpose in their lives. I utilize a reflective, developmental and relational approach to support courage, clarity and connection in love, learning and living.

In life, we rarely have the time to calmly name what’s in our head and in our heart. The time it takes to honor our feelings and thoughts long enough to decipher the wisdom in them. Without staying close to this inner wisdom, we can begin to feel lost and detached from ourselves. We can begin to feel sick. To hear our inner voice again we often need to be heard. As relational of creatures as we are, we are able to listen to ourselves most closely when someone closely listens. My goal is to help you follow the threads of your story and to begin to write the next chapter committed to whatever is best for you.

I am an experienced therapist offering a direct, supportive, nonjudgemental setting to individuals and couples. I work from an Internal Family Systems, Process therapy perspective using dialogue, parts work, role play, educational tools, mindfulness, visualization. My goal is to guide you into connection with yourself and your significant other ( if you come to me as a couple.) I invite you to know your internal landscape, meet your parts, understand your issues and communicate mindfully. I trust implicitly that you are moving toward wholeness and well-being; that your core essence guides us both in the work.

I love working with clients who are curious about what more there is to experience in this life, who are ready to do the work of diving within in order to heal past wounds and create a life that they truly love. Sometimes trauma, relationship problems, work, or other life circumstances can result in our lives shrinking. We can become fearful or lose touch with what it is that we love, prioritizing other things. I'm committed to walking with you while you get back to yourself by processing all that you've been through.

I believe the foundation of living a truly fulfilling life comes from genuine and nurturing connection to others. As a therapist, my work consists of helping you find this type of connection through embracing vulnerability and increasing acceptance. Through our collaboration, we can gently and compassionately explore your needs, hopes, and fears while empowering you to utilize your strengths. Ultimately, you will arrive at a place of greater integration of all parts of yourself, while developing greater curiosity and understanding of the painful emotions and challenges that arise throughout life.

Most mental health providers assist the patient(s) with the process of gaining interpersonal awareness, but do not specialize in both the emotional and physical aspects of intimacy. Alternatively, most intimacy coaches do not specialize in the psychodynamic underpinnings of human attachment and resulting relational dynamics. I offer a safe, non-judgmental, and confidential environment that allows couples or individuals to address issues, questions, and concerns pertaining to sexuality, intimacy, and relationships.

You deserve to feel safe, connected, and understood and have deserved this for a very long time. It hurts when you think about that that you sought connection and comfort from someone important in your life, but did not get what you needed. It can be hard to describe the impacts of these experiences or the toll it took on you to grow up with important needs unmet. If this description speaks to you then you may benefit from healing work around relational trauma and Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

I currently have a short in-person waitlist (office is located in Cambridge, MA) and am not currently taking new telehealth clients - please email (rather than call) if you're interested in being added to the in-person waitlist. I work with adults, teenagers, and children around a range of issues, including anxiety, depression, OCD, relationship issues, life transitions, and the impacts of trauma. I have eight years of clinical experience, and three years of training through Harvard Medical School affiliates. My approach is relational, collaborative, and pragmatic. I specialize in (but don't limit myself to) the following areas:

Healing is possible. No matter who you are, or what happened to you, you deserve to feel safe and at home in your body. You can create a life that is worth living.

Are the relationships in your life making you feel exhausted? Are you not feeling like yourself within those relationships or struggling with low self-esteem? This could be caused by relational trauma or unhealthy relational behavior patterns, which could lead to other mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. You may not have had or observed healthy relationships so communication, boundaries, self-love and expressing emotions may be difficult for you. It's never too late to develop these skills and improve your mental health.

I provide evidence-based care for a range of concerns including depression, anxiety, work/life transitions, eating disorders, and relationship difficulties. I am also passionate in delivering care that focuses on women's wellness areas such as pregnancy, postpartum, and menopause. I have a background in health psychology and work with individuals coping with new medical diagnoses, health conditions, and chronic illnesses.

Welcome! Whether you’re dealing with anxiety, depression, stuck relationship patterns, or the effects of trauma, I will help you unpack your situation so you can gain more perspective, choice, and control. We’ll honor the strengths and strategies that have gotten you through while keeping an eye out for any underlying beliefs or relational habits that no longer serve you. I will listen carefully, ask questions, and share my ideas with you. I may also suggest practical tools to help you ground yourself or handle moments of emotional overwhelm.

My approach to therapy is consistently client-centered and always focused on empathy and creating lasting change. As a psychoanalyst, I work in an in-depth way that tries to take seriously what might be happening outside of awareness. The people I work with range from those suffering from anxiety, depression, and trauma to those who come in simply for relationship issues or greater self-understanding and growth. As a student/teacher of relational psychoanalysis and attachment theory, I have extensive experience working with people who struggle to maintain lasting and healthy love relationships.

We humans are wired for connection – we need it on the most basic level. But humans are the worst! And the best! Let’s just say: humans are complicated. We need each other, but we hurt each other, so we create these little ways to keep ourselves safe…but those ways might not be working anymore. That’s where I come in - I work with people who are experiencing distress within themselves and in their relationships. Therapy with me focuses on identifying and unpacking the unhelpful beliefs and patterns that keep you stuck, and then learning new ways of relating to yourself and others that make you feel ….. happy!?! It’s possible.

Welcome! Are you on a path for living a life of purpose and meaning? Allow me to support you. Come see me in my virtual therapy office! I'm known for my warm, relational approach and holistic, eclectic style, integrating talk therapy with mindfulness, expressive art, hypnotherapy, dreamwork, and more. I provide individualized care, personally tailored to your specific needs and desires. Currently, I'm serving a diverse adult population (primarily the 20s through the 50s) focusing on a variety of issues (creativity, spirituality, past trauma, adult ADHD, anxiety, postpartum, life transitions, grief/loss, as well as recovery).