Parenting Therapists in Lafayette, CA

​​I specialize in supporting parents. I help clients who are coping with stressful circumstances such as a challenging or neurodivergent child, a serious medical diagnosis, divorce, co-parenting, infidelity, a career crisis or the loss of a loved one.

NO.DOUBT you are looking for a therapist with whom you can feel safe and connected, someone who will focus on your goals and respect you. My 25 years of dedicated practice, combined with my ongoing effort to stay on top of the latest psychological research and methods, ensure that I am someone you can trust. I will notice both where you hurt and where you shine and approach your goals with cultural humility, using evidence-based techniques that honor your innate wisdom, while providing the confidence, skill, and leadership that come with 25 years of training and practice in the most challenging of settings.

My practice focuses on therapy for adolescents and adults. I specialize in achievement pressure, school stress, work stress, AD/HD, acting out teens, single parenting, parental support, depression, and anxiety. My treatment approach supports both parents and children in developing healthy strategies for navigating the pressure that is so prevalent in schools and communities today. I also work with individual adult clients facing anxiety, depression, and life changes.

My desire to become a therapist came to me a bit later in life. As a result, I bring 20 years experience of being a parent as well as a lot of life experience. I grew up with a sister with intellectual disability and it had a profound impact on my childhood, but it wasn’t until much later that I realized it was still affecting me as an adult. Early life experiences and relationships form us in ways we may never realize. Siblings often find themselves falling back into their past patterns even as adults. Therapy can be a safe place to explore these dynamics and bring the past into the present.

Parenting can be the hardest job in the world and I am here to help. Do you have a difficult teenager? Is your child having trouble in High School? Has your family experienced divorce, remarriage, or difficulties with co-parenting? These types of issues have become very common and it is normal to need some help coping with them. I have many years experience working with children and their families and as a parent I can relate to the difficulties that arise each day. The decision to start therapy can be difficult because you may feel that you have already tried everything or you wonder if this will really help.

I believe that we are all intrinsically motivated to move towards health--physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Whether I am working with children, teens, or adults, I partner with my clients to better understand them as cultural beings and how their uniqueness is impacted by their experiences in the world. I offer a warm, nurturing, and accepting style and show deep interest in an authentic therapeutic relationship. My goal is to support my clients towards insight and overall balance.

I specialize in working with couples who are planning to have children, postpartum parents, and families to help promote healing and growth. Having and raising children is one of the hardest and longest-term projects anyone will ever take on. I want to help parents engage in this process with self-awareness, intention, and love to help improve their own well-being, as well as the child or children's. I believe wellness starts in the home and each member of a family unit can help contribute to positive connections through taking time to work on themselves and then care for others.

I work with individuals who are experiencing depression, stress, anxiety, grief/loss, abuse, anger, self-esteem and communication issues. I seek to build a strong therapeutic relationship based on honesty, patience, kindness and respect while utilizing an interactive, eclectic therapeutic approach to therapy, working to empower each client to create healthy boundaries and experience satisfying relationships. I provide a confidential and nurturing environment for clients to work through obstacles and achieve personal goals and authenticity.

I work with adults, teens, and children experiencing a range of concerns including anxiety, stress, parenting issues, school or work challenges, and life transitions. Clients are often interested in taking a pause, reassessing their current situation, and collaborating to try new approaches, improve coping skills and resilience. My goal is to help clients move forward in their daily lives with greater ease, a sense of purpose and peace, and curiosity to care and connect to themselves and others authentically.

Are you a parent who would like to get your child support? Are you questioning life transitions and searching for support? Are you experiencing grief/loss? Do you want to strengthen your relationships? Are you struggling with addiction? Are you an educator experiencing work stress or chronic stress? If you've answered yes to any of these questions, you're in the right place! I am an LMFT working in both the Bay and Sacramento areas. As a graduate of St. Mary's College of California, I have the expertise to support and guide you towards symptom relief and live a life full of gratitude and tranquility.

Have you ever wished you could get in-person therapy without having to sit in an office with the therapist? Do you feel too busy to schedule both therapy and exercise into one day and wish the two could be combined? If so, then "walk and talk" could be a good fit for you. I offer the opportunity to receive counseling or coaching while outside in nature moving your body. Research demonstrates that both exercise and spending time outdoors in sunlight and green spaces provides a reduction in symptoms associated with depression, anxiety, and stress while improving mood overall. I also offer zoom or in person sessions.

In my practice of helping others strive for mental wellness, I believe in taking a holistic approach. I specialize in working with children, teens and adults with anxiety, depression and life transitions. I also work with parents in ways to effectively support their children and manage their own mental well-being throughout the parenting journey. In addition I have previously served hundreds of parents and their children in speciality areas such as teen anxiety, teen DBT, and pre-adolescence emotional regulation skill building. I also have specialized training in Perinatal Mental Health through Postpartum Support International.

We have been living through challenging times and in my work I have witnessed increased anxiety and depression in children, teens and adults of all ages. Family life and raising children is challenging in the best of times. For many, it is an important time for self-care and to increase our support systems for ourselves and our loved ones. I have over 20 years experience as a psychotherapist and I specialize in supporting school aged children, teens and families in addressing a wide range of mental health issues including anxiety, depression, behavioral issues, loss, family transitions, and peer/family relationships.

"Many Bay Area dual income and professional families struggle with the pressures of maintaining their lifestyles and helping their children succeed in school. Many suffer from anxiety, depression, relationship issues that are directly related to the challenges they face daily. As a former lawyer, hi-tech marketing director, and a first-time parent later in life, I am intimately familiar with these challenges. When I began practicing as a therapist, I knew I wanted to apply my life experience to help inspire busy professionals to work through the challenges, transitions, and struggles of living and thriving in the Bay Area."

Tired of searching for support? Offering healing in the places that make life challenging is our passion. You deserve the support as an individual, couple, and family to feel strengthened and empowered to live a fulfilling life. Life is challenging and it can be difficult to find the support you need. We are here to offer individualized help to empower you on your path to wholeness. We are a passionate group of therapists who seek a wide range of trainings and specialties to offer a specialized service to each of our clients.

I have worked as a clinical psychologist for over 20 years in the Bay area. My practice is diverse because I like to work with a wide range of individuals and issues. I see adults, adolescents and couples with a broad range of psychological and relationship problems. I have special interest in relationship issues, woman's issues, parenting and health-related problems, including catastrophic illness.

If you are a teen looking for support and guidance for mental health issues, or academic or peer related challenges, I'd love to work with you. We can work collaboratively to clarify your goals and to lower your stress. If you are a parent looking for support or guidance on behalf of your child, particularly with mental health and school related issues, I am available for consultation sessions with you. If you are a woman going through any of life's many transitions, I can offer support and help in that journey. Together, we can address challenges that may be arising, such as grief, loss, anxiety, or depression.

New Beginnings! New Awakenings! New Perspectives and Growth! These are just a few of the benefits of therapy you will gain. I pride myself on developing compassionate, non-judgmental therapeutic relationships with the couples and families and individuals I serve. Some unique things about me: I worked internationally as a therapist in both Hong Kong and Switzerland over the course of 6 years. I gained a significant amount of cultural competency through this amazing experience. Further, I have expertise in the field of Addiction and Recovery. Additionally, I value the competency I demonstrate with High Conflict Couples and Divorce.

I believe patients come to us because they feel grief, anxiety, depression and traumatized or alienated from themselves and others. The suffering you experience comes in many forms and you do not always have the words to say what you feel. I specialize in working with adults and adolescents whom have experienced trauma, depression, anxiety, creative blocks, ADHD, chronic somatic pains and/or are experiencing grief and loss. I also work with couples and families. I have a specialization in expressive arts therapy and sandtray for those who may have difficulty expressing their feelings, memories and experiences through verbal means.