therapy services
I take an active approach that is genuinely curious, warm, direct, and rooted in supporting your own exploration into your inner life
I see clients in-person in Berkeley and online via telehealth
Individual therapy
You might be experiencing:
Perfectionism
Mean or judgmental self-talk
Self-doubt
Self-esteem challenges
Feelings of guilt and shame
Challenges in relationships
Overly focusing on others feelings and needs
Impacts of childhood trauma including abuse, neglect, and emotional lack
Anxiety and/or depression
Life transitions
Grief
Sexuality issues
Identity exploration
Issues of young adulthood - identity, exploring childhood, etc.
Internalized oppression / Internalized superiority
Impacts of immigration, or being a child of immigrants
I also work with caregivers, service workers, artists, activists, neurodivergent folks, queer folks, and people who for a variety of reasons feel like they don't fit in or belong.
How I Work
As a therapist, I am warm, curious, and collaborative. I know the vulnerability of this work, of being a client, and have respect for my clients and their autonomy in their own lives and decisions.
I integrate several modalities and tailor my approach to the person I’m working with. While I primarily blend relational and somatic therapy, I’m also trained in EMDR and AEDP and am happy to talk to you about these modalities as well.
Relational/Psychodynamic Therapy
Relational therapy works from the idea that we all learn relational templates from our childhood systems and from the cultural environments we live within. We learn what we can expect in relationship, and what we can’t, what roles to play in relationship, what parts of ourselves to show and what to hide, all in order to experience acceptance and love which, as infants and young children, we need in order to survive.
These relational templates are often hidden to us, and yet they are like architectural drawings that define the choices we make, the people we’re drawn to, and dictate how we show up. In therapy, these patterns come into the room, because while the therapy relationship is unique, it is a relationship. The therapy room then gets to be a lab, where we can look at these dynamics in real time for the purpose of better understanding how they show up in your life.
Relational patterns and unresolved conflicts and dilemmas, which can cause symptoms such as anxiety and depression, can also be explored in other ways. Through an exploratory, non-judgmental therapy space, we can make connections from the past to the present.
Somatic Therapy
Lots of research has come out over the last several years about what happens in our bodies and nervous systems when we experience trauma that indicates that talking about what happened, analyzing it, making sense of it, often isn’t enough to change it. Somatic, or body-oriented therapy, is about learning to tune in to not just the intellectual parts of ourselves, but also sensations and emotions.
In therapy, we might also use breathing, imagery, and grounding strategies to connect to the nervous system and learn new ways of experiencing safety and connection to self and others.
What are the results?
It’s normal to start therapy and not be sure exactly what’s wrong or what you’re hoping for or why you’re there, but knowing that something isn’t working and needs to change, or that you just want to feel better.
I have witnessed clients experiencing:
Increased self-esteem and self-confidence
More access to inner thoughts, feelings, emotions, and body sensations
More satisfying relationships
Coping strategies and increased resilience to weather hard and uncomfortable feelings
More skillfulness around navigating conflict
More self-compassion
More clarity around decision-making
Being able to experience calm and contentment
Let’s chat
Reach out to book a free 20 minute phone call. I’m happy to answer any questions you have about the therapy process, how I work, and scheduling/logistics. I look forward to hearing from you.