Dialectical Behavior (DBT) Therapists in Oakland, CA

My framework as a psychotherapist is inspired by black feminist sci-fi writer, Octavia E. Butler who saw the possibility of many more worlds than just our own. I believe that transformative internal healing is critical to envisioning and building these worlds without the presence of imperialism, white supremacy, capitalism and cishet-patriarchy. The tools I use to support the exploration of individual, interpersonal and intergenerational trauma are shaped by abolition that rejects punitive and scarcity mindsets and disability justice which strives to value every body.

Through therapy, we can author and re-author life stories and personal mythologies in order to bring self-supporting realities into existence. I work collaboratively with clients, cultivating existing strengths and internal resources in order to foster relationships and life experiences that contribute to clients' recovery and wellbeing. When invited, and with respect, I’m honored to explore what makes clients who they are, and to support who they want to become.

Therapy is the process of coming to a deeper understanding of ourselves and how we approach the world while contained in the therapeutic relationship. I aim to create a safe, compassionate, and collaborative space to explore why patterns of thinking and interacting have become painful. In my experience, this process leads to improved relationships and communication, greater confidence and enjoyment in life, relief from feeling stuck, strengthened coping skills to manage life stressors, and progress towards one's inherent potential to thrive.

Are you feeling stuck in life? Maybe you’re struggling with relationship challenges, past traumas or work stress? Is shame, anxiety, anger or numbness affecting your ability to be happy? Maybe you’re wondering how your substance use, or that of a loved one, is related to any of this? I’d like to offer you a non-judgmental space to explore behaviors, beliefs and feelings that keep you from living the life you want to live. You are not broken and I would be honored to help you reconnect to the innate wisdom and power of your authentic self. My style is warm, nurturing and empathic.

I offer expertise in evidence-based treatments for anxiety, depression, and relationship difficulties. I use a collaborative and strengths-based approach that integrates cultural factors as appropriate. I was raised in an inner-city, urban area, and I carry a high level of understanding for individuals that come from marginalized environments like myself. I also specialize in professional and work stress. I have been a business owner, philanthropist, and investor for almost 30 years. I have experience with high output career stress and how it can affect us.

I am passionate about working with individuals who are experiencing anxiety, traumas that are single incident events such as car accidents, surgeries or that have occurred throughout ones childhood where they are experiencing physical or emotional symptoms now as a result. I love working with individuals who are looking on ways to feel supported to increase their own self worth in all areas of their life. My style is relational and collaborative and I believe that you are the expert in your own life. I can help support in creating change around what works best for you - I pride myself on meeting patients where they are comfortable.

I help clients deal with an array of life problems such as; depression, anxiety, IPV, trauma, assault, chemical dependency, co occurring conditions, maternal and postpartum, infertility, grief, etc. Previous clients have expressed therapy sessions with me have led to; better relationships, solutions to specific problems, and reduction of feelings of stress.

My goal is to provide a safe and supportive container of warmth, presence, and non-judgement where you can bring both your vulnerability and your strengths. Whatever brings you to therapy, we will explore together at your pace and with your unique needs in mind. Whether you are struggling with anxiety, depression, relationship issues, childhood trauma or grief and loss, we will collaboratively work together to find out what healing might look like for you. Our work together can help you recognize limiting patterns or beliefs, create new options, and shed light on forgotten inner resources.

Counseling, to me, is a collaborative space where clients are empowered to explore, find their own path, and work towards their goals. I’m a queer, neurodiverse counselor, and while I am especially passionate about discussing gender, sexuality, and neurodiversity with clients, I enjoy working on a variety of concerns with clients of any identity or experience. Therapy with me often includes building self-awareness, learning and practicing validation, and challenging oneself to make desired changes at a realistic pace.

I believe people are trying their best through good and hard times. Especially during the hard times, we find ways to make it through. I work with people to figure out what their survival strategies are, which ones they want to keep or change. Sometimes, these strategies require us to code-switch, mask, or deny parts of ourselves. I enjoy helping people find out more about themselves, their values, and what ways to care for themselves. I work with them to build a therapy experience for rest, healing, and discovery. Together my clients and I build more places and experiences where they just get to be.

I enjoy working with individuals and couples in both short and long term therapy. I have extensive training in IFS, EMDR, CBT, and Relational Psychodynamic Therapy. My objective is to work with you using the appropriate approach that best fits your goals for therapy. I have a wide range of experience working with the effects of addiction on families, substance abuse, trauma, PTSD, anxiety, and depression. I also have considerable training in sleep disorders and enjoy working with clients to adjust their sleep schedules, thereby improving their daily mood and functioning.

I view therapy as a unique relationship between two people - the therapist and the client. Therapy is a process that fosters acceptance and change of the challenges people face and helps provide clarity. My goal is to help create a safe place to explore thoughts, feelings, and experiences that cause you pain, which may lead to difficulties in relationships, work, and/or daily life. Through this process we will create goals and a plan to reach your specific goals. My approach is genuine, compassionate, and non-judgmental. As a therapist, I bring over 20 years of experience working with individuals from many walks of life.

Are you sensing a budding awareness in yourself of difficult patterns in your life that you wish to transform and grow through? It would be an honor to support you on your healing journey. I’m a therapist with a trauma-informed, client-centered lens and I utilize various creative modalities to help my clients experience greater insight, self-love, and balance in their lives. Some of the tools I use are art therapy, narrative therapy, meditation, dance movement therapy, as well somatic and sensory interventions. I also have training in SE, ACT, DBT, and CBT and these modalities influence my eclectic therapeutic technique.

I am not accepting couples currently. I work with individuals, but my focus is African American men in their first five years of marriage. My goal is to help you become more authentic in your relationships, find and live your values, and bring more peace and growth into your life. I also work with men who want to grow in terms of how they show up in their relationships. I am trained in DBT, Gottman, Narrative Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and mindfulness based approaches.

When we are exposed to trauma at an early age, it can seriously impact how we feel about ourselves and our relationships with others. Trauma can also profoundly affect whether we feel this is a safe world and can contribute to depression, anxiety, and relational/familial issues. My practice is from a strengths-based, trauma-informed perspective with a non-judgmental framework. I aim to understand clients’ internal responses and to provide more options for emotional regulation and problem-solving.

Do you feel as though your anxiety and depression are unmanageable? How about feelings of sadness, hopelessness, or helplessness like you’ve hit rock bottom and are struggling to find hope for tomorrow? Once we start to unravel the details of our past and trauma we give ourselves the ability to process feelings that we have long suppressed. I aim to collaborate with you and provide tools to decrease the challenging feelings you are currently facing and achieve a more integrated and balanced sense of self, leading to emotional healing and personal growth.

I enjoy working with my clients to help them live more in alignment with how they want to be living. We identity sources of "stuckness", which may include histories of trauma/traumatic invalidation, distress around identities related to race, sexuality, gender, and/or neurodivergence, coping with mood disorders and related behavioral and relationship difficulties, among other significant and impactful life experiences and challenges with past coping strategies. While taking a social justice-oriented and compassionate stance, we work on understanding and processing pain in order to increase one's experience of empowerment and ease.

Life can feel impossible to avoid struggling and we often don't feel we have the skills to cope successfully through. Unfortunately, sometimes we don't have all the resources we need for a given situation. Parts of us take on desperate roles trying to help us to survive. This might look like anxiety, depression, PTSD, addiction, and relationship/family issues. I aim to help you process unresolved issues and feelings and find solutions.

You may feel lost, but you are not alone. We all experience suffering as a part of the human condition, yet sometimes our symptoms of stress, despair, worry, or self-criticism stand in the way of living the life that we want. If you find yourself troubled by a particular life problem or psychological condition, or generally lacking a sense of vitality and purpose, working with a clinician can help you reconnect with yourself and your strengths. Therapy often helps us to make useful connections between our actions, our thinking, our emotional reality, and patterns in relationships that we have developed over years.