Gestalt Therapists in Santa Cruz, CA

Are you seeking a therapist who is attuned, invested, present and committed to supporting you on your journey toward growth, discovery, and healing? Having been a client myself, I have understanding and compassion for how challenging it can be to find a therapist who you feel really "gets you" and with whom you feel safe and comfortable being vulnerable and open. I focus on creating a foundation of presence, safety, and trust in the therapeutic relationship. I am here to see you, hear you, understand you, and support you. I will meet you with a non-judgmental, compassionate, and supportive presence as we work toward healing.

As I see it, the primary role of a counselor is to serve as a mirror to help reveal what the client hasn't yet been able to see-especially those patterns of relating to self, others, and the environment that might be causing suffering. At the same time, the counselor is there to reflect, affirm, and strengthen the client's unique gifts and talents.One of the biggest impediments to healing, growth, and creativity is shame. To help clients move through this debilitating emotion, I use a combination of mindfulness, body awareness, and other healing modalities.

I believe that compassion and collaboration are key to a therapuetic relationship. Through the identification of each persons strengths and resources we are all capable of navigating life's challenges and it is my role to assist in the identification and effective utilization of these strengths and resources. If you are suffering from with ADHD, Depression, Conduct Disorder, Parenting issues, Criminal Behavior, adult and adolescent Bi-polar Disorder, addiction, or the effects of trauma, neglect, and abuse please contact me by text, phone or email at 831-588-7063. I have helped many individuals, couples, and families and perhaps I can help you.

I have been providing counseling and psychotherapy to individual adults, couples, children, teen and families in the Santa Cruz area since 1970. I love helping people discover their inner strengths and figure out how to utilize those strengths to create a better life and relationships. I see my role as a combination of coach, mentor, cheerleader and midwife. I utilize a versatile, directive approach to therapy which is informed by several theories and modalities including Family Systems, CBT, Short-term behavioral therapy, Gestalt , Strength-based and Humanistic. Much of my practice deals with achieving personal goals, relationship issues and parent/lchild issues.

Congratulations for taking a step towards creating change. Finding a therapist can be challenging and it is important to find one who is right for you. I offer a free introductory session which we use to get to know each other. Clients often come into my office feeling hopeless or nervous, but usually leave feeling more hopeful and relaxed. I love to see people grow and thrive with the support of therapy. My style is warm, empathic, and collaborative. In our work together we draw on your strengths and wisdom and my goal is to empower you to create a more joyful and fulfilling life.

There is hope. I've worked with lots of folks who feel hopeless, anxious, upset, angry, or confused, and often their lives improve with positive support. My first goal in therapy is to listen with compassion and help build trust between us. We'll work in whatever way is comfortable for you, and when you're ready, we'll chart a course toward meaningful change. Whether I'm working just with you, or with you and your loved ones, I'll value each person's perspective and help look for positive solutions. To learn more me and about therapy, see my video "Why Go to Therapy?" at https://bit.ly/2UG9Aur

Sometimes in an effort to manage painful experiences in life, we end up getting stuck in roles and patterns that do not serve us. Sometimes we don't know where to start, but we know we want something else. I will listen with curiosity and compassion and offer support in your journey to understand what serves you now. I can help with anxiety, depression, history of abuse, lack of motivation and self-destructive habits among other issues. I have a strong interest in healing the effects of trauma so clients can increase their sense of empowerment in the world.

I work well with motivated clients who are looking to improve their daily lives through self-exploration, and are open to challenging their current patterns in order to reach your goals. Whether you are struggling with depression, anxiety, feeling stuck, work/life stress, relationship issues, past trauma, or managing the daily challenges we are facing during this COVID-19 global shift, I would love to be here to support you. I work primarily with individuals and groups.

Are you finding yourself unsatisfied with where you are at in life? Are there patterns in your emotions, relationships, behaviors and substance use that you would like to change and move past? Maybe there are specific issues you are hoping to address, and maybe your entire life feels very off from where you would like it to be and you’re not sure where to start. Either way you’ve taken a very important step by starting to look for help.

I have a somatic focus, which means I can help you discover what is happening in your body as a fast track to healing whatever is on your mind. By slowing down and getting present, we can unwind difficulties, move through stuckness and create more capacity for closeness and connection. I have specialized training in Hakomi, EMDR, EFT, PACT and Stanford GSB's Interpersonal Dynamics Facilitator Program. Please call me for a free phone consultation.

If you work with me, I start with the basic premise that you are already whole, precious, and loveable. You have all the goods to make it in this world. Our job together is to uncover how to connect you with who you actually are, so that you can be with yourself and others in a way where you like how you are being and live the life you actually want to live. I specialize in addressing the impact of traumas and reorienting clients toward their innate wholeness. You may feel limited or stuck in cycles of anxiety, depression, or general off-ness. Together we can explore your patterns and develop new ones.

“Why?”, you ask, “does my life seem so hard?” Anxiety and depression, constant companions, you wonder why you aren’t feeling better after all the hard work you have done on yourself. The voices in your head - “You’re not good enough” or “No one cares” are getting louder - again. You are certain others will see through you and your “imposter syndrome”, get annoyed, and eventually leave. Most of the time you're taking care of others' needs. Often a welcome distraction, you're tired of feeling invisible to those closest to you.

Anxiety, depression, fear, and shame can threaten our ability to develop and maintain a relationship to ourselves. As clues arrive in unconscious cycles, only some of the personal story can be pieced together. We bend, adjust, bury, and mourn parts of ourselves lost to a world that tells us, in one way or another, that our whole self isn’t welcome. Circumstances may have reached a painful point. The therapeutic experience can provide a container of time and space to hold what’s been left behind, preparing a capacity to imagine into our fullest self.

At points in life we all find ourselves in a place of not knowing. Not knowing how to manage feelings, thoughts, and experiences; not knowing what to do about or how to recover from life events; not knowing how to be with others or with the difficulties that arise from being alive and human. I view therapy as a tool for healing and healing as something that begins when we learn how to listen to and relate to ourselves differently. I help individuals, couples and families of diverse backgrounds and identities transform how they relate to themselves and to others in a way that opens the door for healing.

Welcome! May I walk beside you as you continue to uncover, untangle, embody and enliven your life's purpose? I seek to be witness and ally to your own personal life's journey. C.G. Jung states, "Every advance; even the smallest, along the path of conscious realization adds that much to the world".