Psychodynamic Therapists in Los Angeles, CA

Clients have described me as collaborative and compassionate within my strength-based multicultural approach to therapy. You may experience a disconnect from yourself and others that leaves you feeling isolated and limited within your options. Difficult life circumstances, including trauma or harsh self-criticism can lead to rejecting parts of yourself and collaboratively we can work on understanding and reclaiming your identity. Together we will build upon your strengths and recover a sense of hope. I’d be honored to accompany you on your journey to healing from various obstacles in your life.

Every person is a compilation of unique traits, experiences, personality, physiology, and socio-cultural factors. All of these things shaped you into who you are. Some of these factors and experiences may have been painful, making life difficult to navigate or cope with. These experiences may have changed how you function, your relationship with others, how you see and attract others, and the relationship with yourself. Therapy is for you if you are looking to process trauma, lessen symptoms, learn coping skills, unlearn harmful patterns, grow, and have more insight into yourself and your unconscious processes.

The symptoms we feel are messages that something needs our attention. I will support you in uncovering what is below the surface of your struggles. I specialize in helping to understand and manage issues around relationship challenges, life transitions, anxiety, trauma, emotional regulation, self-esteem, grief, loss, creative blocks and more. We will explore and make sense of your feelings, identify recurring patterns, and process what comes up for you. I aim to help you make space for self-compassion and broaden your awareness. In turn you will generate more resilience, confidence, growth, and a deeper sense of peace in your life.

I believe therapy can be a richly rewarding process that supports you in developing a more satisfying life. Through therapy you can find a deeper connection with yourself and others, overcome difficulties and move towards growth, healing, and self-compassion. Although therapy can be challenging at times, it can also be playful, utilizing humor and genuine curiosity. I strive to create a non-judgmental and collaborative environment, fostering trust, safety, and connection. My personal style is warm, engaged, and caring.

The only constant is change, and therapy gives us the space and the tools to respond to it. I’m deeply passionate about supporting adolescents, individuals, and couples as they navigate life's twists and turns. Whether you're grappling with life transitions, anxiety, depression, substance abuse, eating disorders, or relationship issues, you deserve a dedicated space to feel understood and empowered to enact positive change in your life.

Hello! My name is Colleen and I am passionate about what I do! I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker that has worked within the State of California for 6 years now! I have extensive background working with many different populations as well as focuses! I have worked with active duty Military and their families, Anxiety, Depression, self-esteem enhancement and Trauma (both childhood and adult).

“Imperfection is not our personal problem – it is a natural part of existing.” (Tara Brach). I understand that life can be challenging and has its “faults” but it's simply how we choose to manage it. We might often beat ourselves up for lack of follow-through, discipline, or motivation. As Tara Brach stated, we are humans, and being imperfect is a natural part of life. We might fail to realize that being human means making mistakes. While working closely together, I intend to create a space where you can be unapologetically yourself, and not worry about the “shoulds” in life.

Therapy offers a confidential place of refuge where you can be seen and heard. Together we will explore how external pressures and feelings of self-blame, self-criticism, fear or sadness, as well as loss and past trauma, may be affecting your ability to move forward or express yourself in an authentic way. By devoting time and attention to understanding your unique story and the ways in which past relationships shape current ones, you can gain greater self-awareness and an understanding of how underlying feelings and thoughts are affecting your mood. In building a strong relationship I will help you work through core issues.

We often seek therapy when we feel overwhelmed, confused, or frustrated by feelings that we can't seem to get past. We begin feeling stuck and worry that maybe something is wrong with us, or that we'll always feel this way. While it can sometimes feel hopeless, this often happens because of interference from ideas, beliefs, or fears that we don't realize we're holding onto. Therapy brings these to light, increasing our understanding of ourselves and our situation, and creating the conditions needed to finally move forward.

Providing optimal care requires the capacity for humble self-reflection, the willingness to shift gears when needed, and the creativity to approach problems in unexpected ways. One of my primary goals as a therapist is to constantly question and re-evaluate my own perceptions, intuition, and clinical judgment. I specialize in treating adolescents and adults with eating disorders, relationship issues, depression, and anxiety disorders. Broadly trained in dialectical behavioral, cognitive, behavioral, and psychodynamic treatments models, as well as specific empirically supported interventions, I strive to address each individual's needs with the appropriate clinical approach.

As a California-based Licensed Clinical Social Worker, I offer individual, couples, and family therapy to support the treatment of relational issues, emotional pain, trauma, grief and loss, anxiety, depression, and life transitions. I believe that person-centered care in a thoughtful, safe, and supportive environment is key to helping clients find more effective ways to confront and explore issues that are negatively impacting their lives. My aim is to help you better understand who you are, resolve inner and interpersonal conflicts, and live authentically in the world.

Do you want to experience life with more joy and agency, meet obstacles with less anxiety and fear, and free space in your mind for feelings other than self-criticism and shame? I believe that each of us has the capacity to heal from painful past experiences, lead a life of excitement and choice, and take on challenges without being overcome by them. Sometimes, life's obstacles hinder our ability to do this, and that’s where therapy can help.

I come from a psychodynamic perspective and bring somatic tools, EMDR training and mindfulness practice to the healing space. I offer a warm, open heart and deeply curious, intuitive mind, utilizing the therapeutic relationship to foster safe healing.

As a therapist, it is my sole intention to assist you in nurturing your own unique insight. When I'm in conversation with my clients, we work together to name and understand the issues that trouble them. I assist them in confronting the barriers to a more enjoyable life, and together we discover what needs to change, or what can be more peacefully accepted. I am primarily a "talk" therapist. My clients have described me as "down to earth" and "personable." I also use Cognitive Behavioral techniques in order to change unhelpful patterns of thinking and behavior.

I believe therapy is a container for self-expression where you can show up exactly as you are. As a person with lived experience of being queer, Arab, Non-binary, and Muslim, I have seen first hand how difficult it is to find someone whose values align around the importance of community and is committed to a trauma-informed framework. Growing up in a world that constantly feeds us narratives such as “healing happens alone” and “we are solely responsible for the state of our own wellbeing” can be deeply challenging and frustrating. Together, we will dismantle the notion of isolation as a symbol of strength.

You may have asked yourself, "Why do I keep making the same mistakes again and again?" By looking at both your present state and personal history, we can find out together. We will work to bring the unconscious into the conscious mind to help you get out of your own way, and get the things that you want and deserve. I will support you through that journey in a safe environment. I can help you find your own voice and learn to use it.

Therapy seeks to address the patterns and unresolved material unique to each of us which hampers our ability to connect meaningfully with others and limits our capacity for joy. I work with couples and individuals looking to deepen their understanding of themselves and work collaboratively to cultivate curiosity, authenticity, honesty, self-compassion, and the ability to tolerate difficult feelings. I use a combination of gestalt therapy, psychodynamic therapy, relational therapy, EMDR, and somatic interventions when working with individuals. My couple’s work is mainly inspired by family systems theory and imago therapy.

I treat children, adolescents and their families in my practice. Examples of issues I address include depression, anxiety, learning and behavioral challenges, bullying and conflict with peers, divorce, step-families, death of a parent or sibling, sexual, emotional or physical abuse, school refusal, school phobia, self-harming behaviors, and identity issues.

As a licensed Clinical Psychologist in private practice, I have treated a variety of disorders and issues ranging from anxiety and depression to relationship problems, career transitions, low self-esteem, adjustment disorders, parenting issues, and grief.