Mindfulness Based Therapies

Managing Depression and Anxiety Holistically: A Skills and Support Group

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This group provides an encouraging, non-judgmental space to establish self-care practices to manage symptoms of depression and/or anxiety. Along with solution-focused goal-setting and tracking tools, we’ll have space to build understanding and compassion for ongoing challenges and blocks that may arise along the way. For the full group description, visit: www.alchemytherapy.org/supportgroup

Schedule:

10 weekly sessions between the dates of March 6th – May 25th

Ongoing day and time TBD based on group member availability – please disregard schedule information input on this listing site

Structure:

Our meetings will blend time for individual check-ins, group experiential practices, skill-shares, and group discussions on topics of interest. The group sessions will be 90 minutes long, all online. We will have the same 6 to 8 members throughout the whole group.

Fees:

Sliding-Scale, $30-$100/week, paid via credit card. Payments for all 10 sessions will be made at the start of the group.

(If the fee range above is prohibitive to your participation, I will reach out if a reduced fee spot becomes available.)

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Sabrina Sierra

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As a therapist, I see myself as a collaborator in an unfolding process of collective liberation. I take a holistic approach grounded in cultural humility and an understanding that our lived identities and ancestral lineages greatly impact our struggles and paths to wellness.

I received an MA in Integral Counseling Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies, and a BA in Community Studies from UC Santa Cruz. I approach therapy with an interest in spirituality, archetypes, and consciousness. I am also grounded in material realities and bring a critical social justice framework to my practice. Issues related to racism, colonization, and assimilation are key areas of focus for me. Additionally, I have devoted several years to intersectional gender-justice work centered on the experiences of female, trans, and non-binary people, especially youth.

I was born and raised in the Bay Area and identify as mestiza or multiracial with recent generations of my family immigrating from the Philippines and Guatemala. Outside of my family of origin, I’ve found community through participation in DIY & QTPOC arts and music scenes and activist groups.

Tending to ourselves empowers us to more positively evolve our relationships, communities, and world. Supporting you in nurturing self-compassion, connecting to your inner-wisdom, and aligning with your personal values is my intention.

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Online Mindfulness Group for Teens

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The Online Mindfulness Group for Teens will be an 8-week online skills-based group for high-school-aged teens targeted toward those with an interest in developing mindfulness skills. We’ll cover a number of topics, including:

  • introductory mindfulness skills

  • skills for navigating intense emotions

  • befriending boredom

  • understanding defenses

  • managing social media, substance and alcohol use

  • self-acceptance, self-compassion

  • relationships

This group welcomes clients across gender, sexuality and neurodiversity spectrums. The facilitators are committed to the continual pursuit of culturally responsive care.

 

This group is run by Jeremy Prillwitz LAADC and Darcy Dittrich AMFT.

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Darcy Dittrich

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My Approach​

I endeavor to bring warmth, awareness, and connection to my sessions. I co-create a unique healing experience with clients, often using humor and creativity to encourage mindfulness, self-compassion, and change. I believe firmly that healing is non-linear, and absolutely that it is possible. My colleagues have described me as “compassionate, deep-feeling, inquisitive and intuitive.” My clients have described me as “warm, accepting, and caring.”

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I tend to work from a blend of humanistic, relational, and psychodynamic lenses, which means I work to help clients gain clearer insight into their lives, identities, and relationships while holding that each person is a unique, valuable being. We’ll look at patterns that have shown up again and again in your life by gaining a deeper understanding of your emotions, thoughts, early-life experiences and beliefs. Once we can see these patterns clearly is when we can begin to approach the change you’d like to see. We’ll also focus on your relationships, values, and autonomy. I borrow techniques from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Narrative Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Mindfulness-Based Self Compassion, and Motivational Interviewing. You may or may not be familiar with these theories and terms, and ultimately you probably don’t need to be! Once we establish your goals, we’ll develop a treatment plan with what’s best for you.

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I pursue antiracism, feminism, Harm Reduction, Health at Every Size (HAES), LGBTQ+ allyship and disability justice. I am trauma-informed. I encourage the discussion of intersectional identity. If you’re not sure what that means, let’s talk about it!

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About Me

I earned my Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology from The Wright Institute in Berkeley. I completed my Clinical Internship at SF AIDS Foundation’s Stonewall Project, a counseling program dedicated to providing Harm Reduction-based substance use and mental health treatment to gay, bi and trans men who have sex with men (MSM) who are interested in addressing their drug or alcohol use. I have specific clinical experience working with anxiety, depression, substance and alcohol use, sex and sexuality, career coaching, identity, trauma, and relationships. I have a deep understanding of multicultural relationships, work stress, life transitions, blended families, performing arts, chronic pain, and intuitive eating.

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Prior to beginning a career in counseling, I worked at tech startups and Fortune 500 corporations for a decade. This helped me develop a strong sense of professionalism, and also exposed me to the pressures of our modern working world. I’ve witnessed the impacts of stress, burnout, and discrimination. Supporting my colleagues in their struggles deepened my interest in pursuing a career helping others with healing and growth.

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I grew up in the Northeast, and have also lived in the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic, plus a brief time in Rome. I love exploring and learning about new cultures, but California has been my home since 2010. My favorite things to do include: walking, hiking, dancing, yoga, listening to music, painting, singing at the top of my lungs, cooking, baking bread, meditating and taking naps.

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Camara Rajabari

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I am the Great Great Great+ Granddaughter of enslaved Africans and African Freedmen of the Muskogee (Creek) Nation. I stand on their shoulders.

I believe that society is shifting its focus—companies/billionaires are planning to create “metaverses” and it leaves me wondering about the role of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in these new “worlds.” Considering that many of the current roles for communities of color have been that of consumers, are “we” planning to assume the same roles in new worlds?

I am an AfroFuturist and I propose that we RE-Imagine our roles in the new world meta landscape from consumer to CREATOR. I believe we can only do that by REIMAGINING Liberation. So, my contribution is a space for Black, Indigenous, and POC to safely explore lineage healing as a roadmap to a future of our own design—we create our participation from a place of power, imagination, and equity.

The paradox of Ancestor psychotherapy is that it wants us to look back at the past and identify the roots of our suffering to contribute to our future. My theory is that it is in this process we go back and RETRIEVE what is nurturing, what is healing, and what is necessary for our evolutionary journey. This is what the Akan of Ghana refer to as Sankofa.

Ancestral psychotherapy holds that we (BIPOC) are critical shapers of the future and that the key to our survival is rooted in the past wisdom of our Ancestors.

I grew up in a family where social justice was a regular topic of conversation at the kitchen table. My family linked personal success with knowing one’s self, history, and culture as a source of strength. I have worked and lived within a variety of communities and have had the opportunity to learn from many rich cultural traditions. It is important to me to practice cultural humility by being respectful and curious. As a clinician, I believe deeply in the exploration of ancient ancestral wisdom as a psychological resource. Over the last few years, I have been working with traditional African Indigenous practices and honoring the wisdom of plant medicines to help heal generational trauma.

My psychotherapy practice is holistic in its foundation—meaning my primary focus is the whole person. Everything a person brings into therapy is important, valid, and worthy of exploration. I hold sacred the intersectionality of race, age, sexuality, religion, gender, ability, socio-economic background, citizenship status, and more. All identities are welcome in my practice, which I hold with integrity and respect. I work with the understanding that people are multiplicitous and there exist unique relationships to the many parts of the self. As an African American womxn, I understand the importance of linking our mental health to re-remembering our personal narratives and evolving identities. I am an advocate for addressing historical harms and healing intergenerational wounds through trauma-informed practices, that can include ancestral veneration, expressive arts, mindfulness, depth/dream analysis, nature-based spirituality, and the exploration of consciousness.

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Margaret Chase

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Hi

I am Margaret, I help pregnant moms map out what they want for their home birth so that they are confident and have  sovereignty in their bodies and space.

I provider one on one support along with a group program to support pregnant moms along their transformative journey of pregnancy and birth.  I also will be providing post partum Ayurvedic doula services which include a 42 day sacred window of rest and bonding for mom and baby.

Benefits of working with me.

  • You will stand in your power and trust your body’s innate ability to birth at home without being swayed by unnecessary interventions or protocol that you do not want.

 

  • You will have a customized plan for your home birth with all the pieces in place so that you feel great about and ready for your birth.

 

  • You will have a solid connection to yourself that strengthens the connection to  your baby, partner, and others who you chose to be part of your birth.

Other Services

Hatha Yoga teacher 500hours

Prenatal and Postpartum yoga teacher

Birth Café with Margaret- A month virtual birth café.  To discuss issues and hear home birth stories.

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Marissa Whorton

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Are you experiencing critical thoughts or feeling that you’re not good enough? Have these thoughts started to cloud your sense of who you are and weigh you down? 

I am here to help you put these painful thoughts to rest. 

The burdens of tough experiences pile up and cause both an emotional and a physical toll. You may have noticed that not only are you feeling down, but your work and relationships are also suffering. When our feelings have not been sorted out, it is common to feel the weight of them and to feel stuck. 

I view myself as a guide to walk side-by-side with you, supporting you with getting to know the parts of yourself that at times lead you to spiral as well as the parts of yourself that help you to thrive. Confidence, courage and connection are a few of the natural results of working mindfully to manage both what is pleasant and unpleasant. 

As you learn to experience calm, it helps with resilience and continued self-discovery so that you enter into a sustainable relationship with yourself and those around you. 

When you feel good on the inside, you radiate on the outside.

Click on the “web site” button to schedule a consultation so that we can learn more about one another. I’m excited to hear about the goals you have for yourself and explore ways I can help you to accomplish them.

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Virtual Ongoing Harm Reduction Therapy Support Groups

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These groups are designed to provide additional support for clients who have completed the 8-Week Harm Reduction Psycho-educational Group or have had previous experience with harm reduction therapy.

In this support group, we will go into a more in- depth exploration of substance use strategies, check-ins and goals. Everyone is encouraged to share their experiences with moderation of or abstinence from substance use.

On Wednesdays, group one from 5:30 to 7pm and group two from 7:10 to 8:30pm.

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Psycho-educational Harm Reduction Therapy Group

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The 8 week Introductory psycho-educational Harm Reduction Therapy group is for those who are new to Harm Reduction.
Group members will learn about the philosophy of harm reduction and help identify effective harm reduction techniques that work for them. They will also work to identify and help navigate the feelings are associated with alcohol and other drug use. CBT, DBT, self-compassion and mindfulness are used to teach coping skills. This group will implement modest goal setting and exploration around the ability to adhere to set goals.
Assessments are being scheduled now for the upcoming group.

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