Therapists in San Francisco, CA

I am an experienced psychologist providing brief and long-term psychotherapy and crisis intervention to individual adults and couples. I specialize in trauma, depression, anxiety, separation and divorce, loss and grief, life transitions, relational issues, among others. I am a Certified EMDR practitioner and an Approved Consultant. EMDR is a specialized therapy for symptom relief and the processing of stress reactions/trauma, whether experienced from the distant past or more recently. I am a facilitator for Laurel Parnell's Attachment Focused-EMDR trainings. In addition, I am a Certified Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP) and a facilitator of SE trainings. I provide Consultation to Licensed Professionals.

I became a therapist because I love people and their stories. I appreciate the complexity of people, the therapeutic process, and the reality that multiple truths of the human experience don’t often fit together neatly. Part of my work as a therapist helps people dig down to their truths so they can better hold themselves and communicate honestly with others. In my practice, I have seen therapy facilitate deep personal growth and expansion. As we know and expand ourselves, we can all better hold complexity and bring more health and balance into our lives.

Are you struggling with work, relational, and life stressors that have overwhelmed you and you are unsure what to do next? You're trying to open the next chapter in your life, but your past traumas and anxiety stop you. This is where I come in and help guide you in making YOUR right decision. I will help you through your journey in becoming worry-free and assist you in processing unresolved feelings and learning healthy coping skills for emotional distress

I am an experienced psychotherapist with offices in both San Francisco and Berkeley. I provide therapy for adults and adolescents as my primary focus. I meet with individuals, couples, and families to help them overcome areas of emotional and relational difficulties. I have an active, open way of working and am curious, engaged, honest, and direct. I take people's need for change very seriously, and am an advocate for finding ways to help people live with greater depth, satisfaction, and choice. While this can involve diligence, resilience, and perseverance, play and creativity are also integral in the process.

My ideal client is someone who is open-minded, receptive to challenge, and motivated towards enacting positive change in their life. Many of the individuals I support are referred through couples therapy and struggle with relationship challenges, physical and emotional intimacy, communication and self-expression, and establishing healthy boundaries. I collaborate closely with referring couples providers to ensure continuity of care and optimize outcomes in individual treatment. My relational style helps build trust and safety and has proven especially beneficial for clients who are hesitant or new to the therapeutic process.

I mostly work with gay/queer individuals and relationships (couples/polycules). Identity, transition, and shame come up regularly in my sessions, and I am comfortable discussing sex, from kink/BDSM to pleasure to communication. I focus on anxiety, including workaholism, perfectionism, substance use, and body concerns. With relationships (monogamous, open, and poly), we'll evaluate your current goals and needs before exploring new ways of connecting, with joy and self-compassion and trust. This list is not exhaustive, so bring your whole self and we'll get curious together.

Are you feeling disappointed and dissatisfied with your current circumstances, relationships, work, or the world at large? I specialize in working with adults, adolescents, and couples experiencing high levels of stress, interpersonal conflict, difficult family/relationship dynamics, grief, and chronic pain or illness. I often work with people who feel "different" and who may have experienced deep feelings of otherness throughout their lives. This includes children of immigrants, neurodiverse individuals, survivors of complex trauma/abuse, and those who identify with minority status in one or more ways.

Hi, I’m Eula Lys (“oi-lah leese”). I'm a trans non-binary therapist and provide somatic, relational psychotherapy that celebrates queer, expansive, non-conforming and neurodivergent folx. I help you embody your authentic self and come home to your body. I get how exhausting it can be to find supportive spaces where you have the freedom to let your identity expand and evolve. I hold a space that is supportive, affirming, and creative. I keep it real, and hold space where we can name and acknowledge systems of oppression.

Life can be messy and you still deserve to live their best life. I support adults navigating all kinds of life transitions- where you can have a range of emotions; this could be something from the past that is hard to let go of; it could be a break up, starting a new career, navigating motherhood, or gender transition. Therapy can be a great way to improve your relationship with yourself by giving you a better understanding of who you are and why you do the things you do; this can serve as a catalyst to improve your overall life starting with how you feel about yourself and your relationships with others.

People thrive when they feel a sense of purpose and connection to themselves and others. Most people come to see me when something is missing from their lives, be it purpose, connection, or both. Depression and/or anxiety may be at work. Anger or grief could consume more of their time and focus. Others feel stagnant, confused, expressing a lack of motivation and self-worth. Finding a safe place to explore your current struggles is possible in therapy. To achieve the meaningful changes you desire, seeking professional help is an effective option.

Relationships with others define experience and work gives a sense of purpose. Disturbance in these affect well being and contribute to an overwhelmed response leading to collapse. As trauma is relational so is recovery and healing. The right therapeutic alliance is a key component. A weakness, a crisis, or an illness can be a transition to an accomplished strength. With proper support, connection, and engagement, inner resources are accessed that allow for growth and resilience and the possibility of change, healing, and transformation.

There is no one reason to enter therapy that is more meaningful or valid than any other. In my approach, all of your experiences matter and there are no wrong answers. I view each person as unique and multi-dimensional–not just a diagnosis or a set of symptoms. You and I will discuss and think together about your past, present, and future to gain a deeper understanding of how you experience the world. Through this process we can uncover thoughts and feelings you may not have realized you had, and help you to gain a new understanding of yourself and your relationships that improves your quality of life and sense of peace of mind.

There are so many reasons why people seek out psychotherapy. Maybe you are feeling trapped in a cycle of destructive patterns that are causing great suffering to you or the people around you. These struggles might be a result of: a painful relationship with your body and food, an eating disorder, a history of abuse, trauma or alcoholism in your childhood home or difficulites parenting your child or teenager. You may be seeking help for your child who is having trouble with relationships, school, drugs and alcohol, adhering to family rules or is not feeling strong about who they are as an individual.

I specialize in working with men approaching or in mid-life (30’s, 40’s, 50’s) who need help with work, relational and personal challenges. Adapting to a transition or preparing to make one, can lead to feeling stuck, anxious, depressed or full of anger. Perhaps you’re in a relationship that is more characterized by conflict rather than love and satisfying sex. Maybe you’re facing loss, feeling disconnected or overwhelmed by your feelings. These experiences can lead to addiction, isolation and compulsive behaviors. I’ve worked with these issues and I can help you.

My adult and couples clients seek me out for many reasons. Some want to make changes in their lives. Others feel weighed down by difficult emotions, relationships, or past experiences. Some just want to better understand themselves and how to find meaning. My work is a collaborative process, rooted in theory and research, that creates meaningful, lasting change. I've helped clients with professional stress, challenging relationships, mood difficulties (anxiety, depression), challenges adjusting to new life stages/change, medical illness, substance use, a desire to build mindfulness skills, or simply feeling “stuck” and uncreative.

Most of us lug around a suitcase full of our thoughts, feelings, family history and past experiences and have no idea what's in there. Our current responses to and experience of life come from the contents of that suitcase. Together in therapy we gently unpack it. We will see what is working for you, what needs more support and what has served it's purpose but no longer works. I work collaboratively and am curious about all the things that make you who you are. I am particularly interested in working with people who feel misunderstood or unimportant.

I specialize in marital and premarital couple therapy, ADHD and anxiety. If anxiety, focusing or planning things are affecting your relationship, I can help. As you struggle, you know something needs to change. You're tired of avoiding or obsessing about dealing with these issues. You notice it's affecting your mental health and want to find new ways to manage it. You know your mood and stress levels affect your mental health and all parts of life. With ADHD, supports are so key for balance. You've struggled long enough and ready to make changes to feel better about them. If this is you, I can help and welcome you to reach out.

As a psychologist I evaluate and treat individuals who seek help for depression, anxiety, life dissatisfaction (from relationships and work stress), relational trauma (e.g. childhood abuse and emotional neglect) and addiction/compulsive behaviors that may co-occur with depression, anxiety or trauma/PTSD. Of note, you do not have to be in crisis to be in therapy; I often work with individuals who are interested in personal growth, long-term recovery issues, regaining meaning and passion after loss and sometimes stopping distressing interpersonal patterns. Treatment is generally trauma-informed and phase-oriented, integrating body-mind interventions and neurobiology. Please visit my website for details,

The heart of my work centers around adults of the South Asian Diaspora. My goal in emphasizing my practice here is to recognize a need for folks to have a therapist who truly understands their background and can create safety in talking about parts of the culture that can feel shameful or misunderstood from a Western perspective. The most common areas of focus include family of origin issues, intergenerational trauma and creating space to heal your inner child, acknowledging your grief, exploring your TRUE identity, and cultivating positive relationships by creating boundaries and building self-esteem + confidence.