Therapists in Oakland, CA
Ask Alison Leigh, PHD, MFT
Marriage & Family Therapist, PhD, MFT
Verified Verified
Oakland, CA 94602 (Online Only)
The past 22 years I've seen an eclectic group of clientele: men, women & couples of any gender/orientation who want to improve their sexual lifestyle. I've helped men overcome ED through increasing their self confidence and women who want to feel more sexually in charge. I've seen over 25,000 couples throughout every stage of their relationship whether single, dating, married, or exploring and experimenting couples to ones who are curious how to stay together and keep the chemistry strong. My clients include stay at home moms, stressed out executives, artists, entrepreneurs & communities: LGBTQ, BDSM, & Transgender Families.
The past 22 years I've seen an eclectic group of clientele: men, women & couples of any gender/orientation who want to improve their sexual lifestyle. I've helped men overcome ED through increasing their self confidence and women who want to feel more sexually in charge. I've seen over 25,000 couples throughout every stage of their relationship whether single, dating, married, or exploring and experimenting couples to ones who are curious how to stay together and keep the chemistry strong. My clients include stay at home moms, stressed out executives, artists, entrepreneurs & communities: LGBTQ, BDSM, & Transgender Families.
Online Therapists
Brenda Fellows
PhD
Verified Verified
Foster City, CA 94404
As a veteran mental health provider and life strategist, I offer many holistic counseling modalities in various settings: home, workplace, school, university, community. Behavior modification and other treatment approaches have been highly successful for those suffering from depression, anxiety, anger, emotional regulation, weight management challenges. Together we explore underlying issues fueling your irrational thoughts and dysfunctional behaviors- keeping you stuck. When applicable, I provide Solution-Focused Therapy by negotiating goals for sustainability; both short and long-term. As an EAP provider I offer organizational consultation in numerous areas: individual, group behavior, leadership, conflict, communication, emotional intelligence, time, stress, anger management, etc. Psychological Testing and Evaluation.
As a veteran mental health provider and life strategist, I offer many holistic counseling modalities in various settings: home, workplace, school, university, community. Behavior modification and other treatment approaches have been highly successful for those suffering from depression, anxiety, anger, emotional regulation, weight management challenges. Together we explore underlying issues fueling your irrational thoughts and dysfunctional behaviors- keeping you stuck. When applicable, I provide Solution-Focused Therapy by negotiating goals for sustainability; both short and long-term. As an EAP provider I offer organizational consultation in numerous areas: individual, group behavior, leadership, conflict, communication, emotional intelligence, time, stress, anger management, etc. Psychological Testing and Evaluation.
Jesse Wade
Psychologist, PsyD
Verified Verified
Sacramento, CA 95811
My training would be defined as "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy" but I engage in general therapy. This means that I will work with my clients to meet them where they are and use tools, interventions and approaches that respect their person and strives to align with who they are. I am here for the client and make it a point to engage on a humanistic level. I am not a therapist who sits in a chair and asks "how does that make you feel?" I am a therapist who wants to actively help you identify your goal(s) and come up with a plan for you to reach them. I will not waste your time and I am invested as much as you are.
My training would be defined as "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy" but I engage in general therapy. This means that I will work with my clients to meet them where they are and use tools, interventions and approaches that respect their person and strives to align with who they are. I am here for the client and make it a point to engage on a humanistic level. I am not a therapist who sits in a chair and asks "how does that make you feel?" I am a therapist who wants to actively help you identify your goal(s) and come up with a plan for you to reach them. I will not waste your time and I am invested as much as you are.
See more therapy options for Oakland
Depression Therapists
What is the goal of therapy for depression?
Therapy for depression has several major goals. One is to relieve the mental pain of depression, which distorts feeling and thinking so that sufferers cannot see beyond their current state of mind or envision feeling better. Another is to give people the mental tools to recognize and correct the kinds of distorted thinking that turn a problem into a catastrophe and lead to despair. Therapy also teaches people how to process negative emotions in constructive ways, so they have more control over their own emotional reactivity. And it helps people regain the ability to see themselves positively, the motivation to do things, and the capacity for pleasure.
What happens in therapy for depression?
Perhaps most important, no matter the type of therapy, patients form an alliance with the therapist; that connection is therapeutic in itself, plus it becomes an instrument of change. Patients learn to identify and to challenge their own erroneous beliefs and thoughts that amplify the effects of negative experiences. They learn to identify situations in which they are especially vulnerable. And they learn new patterns of thinking and behaving. They may be given “homework” assignments in which they practice their developing skills. In addition, good therapists regularly monitor patients to assess whether and how much the condition is improving.
What therapy types help with depression?
Several types of short-term therapy have been found effective, each targeting one or more areas of dysfunction. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) helps clients challenge their negative thoughts and beliefs, learn new behavioral strategies, and curb reactivity to distressing situations. Behavioral activation (BA) is a form of therapy often used in conjunction with CBT; it focuses on engagement in rewarding activity as a pathway to changing negative feelings and disturbed mood. Another widely used approach is interpersonal therapy (IPT), which targets the social difficulties that both give rise to and get exacerbated by depression. Therapists may combine approaches as needed.
Can therapy for depression be done online?
Studies have found that online therapy can be highly effective for treating depression, although it may be more challenging to build a good therapist-patient alliance on screen than in person—at least at first. However, online therapy can offer considerable advantages. Accessibility and convenience are tops among them. Some people actually find it easier to talk about problems online than in person. While online therapy typically limits visibility of facial expression and body gestures that give important nonverbal cues to a patient’s state of mind, it can give therapists a glimpse into a patient’s world and life, providing information that can be highly useful in guiding therapy.
How effective is therapy for depression?
Many studies show that therapy is highly effective provided that patients complete the prescribed course of therapy, commonly 16 to 20 sessions. Over the long term, it is more effective than medication and the effects are more enduring. As a result, psychotherapy has the power not just to relieve current suffering but to prevent future episodes of the disorder. Therapy reverses the dysfunction in neural circuitry that disposes individuals to a negative view of themselves, the world, and their future and they acquire coping techniques, problem-solving skills, and understanding of their own vulnerabilities that are useful over the course of a lifetime.