Chronic Pain

Maria Thompson

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Maria is a first-generation Mexican-American woman who has worked in the mental health field and with the geriatric population for over 10 years. She has provided grief counseling, transitional support through life changes with couples, families and groups of unrelated persons. We are all individuals who require different interventions for navigating our personal goals and challenges/changes in life. The process of creating individual plans based on a patient’s strengths and resources is a creative process that helps Maria find joy and excitement in the work that she does. She loves that her work allows patients to build their tool box for managing phases in their lives. In addition to being a psychotherapist, Maria is a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS), Substance Use Disorder Rehabilitation Counselor (SUDRC) and Zumba Instructor.

Courageous Living Skills Class

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If you are a WOMAN who has experienced more than your fair share of pain, this group is for you.

Do you find that you must show up everyday and be BRAVE just to make it through?

Press the PAUSE button on shame spirals, panic attacks, isolation, confusion and all sorts of unpleasant experiences that have taken your JOY, POWER and SELF-CONFIDENCE.

The COURAGEOUS LIVING SKILLS CLASS is a space where you can LEARN to:

– land in the present moment

– breathe with greater ease

– create community with women who ‘get it’

– use skills and techniques that make living easier

When awful things happen, it is human nature that we close ourselves to experiences that could lead to more hurt. What many people don’t learn, though, is how to unlock the pain and grief that is held within.

We’ve got you.

Within the Courageous Living Skills Class, we welcome you and all parts of you. For 1 hour per week, you are invited to learn simple tools and practice simple skills that will magnify clarity and calm in your life.

We are focused on removing the blocks that are keeping you from living an empowered life as well as keeping a focus on where you want to go and building habits that will get you there.

You will never be pressed to share more than you want. Your privacy is important. Everything you do talk about in the group is just for us to know and work through together.

Understand more about what happens to people when they encounter overwhelming experiences, get to know your individual strengths, the strengths of your community and positively transform your life and the life of those around you.

NEXT Step?

Call or email our office to schedule an intake chat. This gives Wendy and Marissa an opportunity to get to know you better, to answer any questions you have about the group and will also serve as an opportunity to support you with preparing for the learning and growing experience ahead.

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All Identity Adult Relational Growth Group

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For accomplished adults who are ready to go from internal turmoil and suffering as the result of old wounds to thriving with internal safety and social confidence!

Have you ever wondered what it might be like to better understand your inner world and how to:

– slow down or completely stop being triggered & high jacked

– quiet the inner critic or inner perfectionist that sabotages your greatest efforts

– release yourself from the grip of stuck, stale and painful relationship patterns

This group uses Internal Family Systems (IFS) as a foundation for teaching about parts of your personality and exploring how they interact with each other. Group members will learn to recognize and identify those emotions, thoughts and reactions that create internal and external challenges throughout life. Sessions will include getting to know those parts of ourselves, and learning how to access the core qualities of a Self that is present within all of us. 

With others, you will have an opportunity to:

– Work through discomfort and anxiety so that you can achieve the level of closeness and intimacy you desire

– Courageously connect with vulnerability and anger rather than engaging in avoidance and repression

– Experiment with expression of Self which will help you to increase assertiveness, self-confidence and calm

– Practice welcoming all of your parts while increasing presence, awareness and mindfulness

IFS is a powerful tool that can help you achieve greater well-being and balance by not only becoming more aware of these internal patterns, but by going toward them with curiosity and compassion to better understand and heal them. 

Get to know your Self better, understand why you act the way you do, and develop a toolkit you can use to empower your sense of courage and creativity.

NEXT Step? Email our office to schedule a brief phone chat with Karla. We would be delighted to answer any questions you have about the group and support you with preparing for the learning and growing experience ahead.

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Leticia Vaca

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Leticia Vaca, MSW, LCSW is the CEO of Urban Health Group LLC and Bay Area Native. It turns out that, like a growing number of families across the United States, she has personal experience with family confronting the challenges of mental illness, substance abuse and physical aliments. Leticia has 15 years experience in field of health, human services, and mental health. In addition to private practice, she works as a medical social worker and has been a hospital discharge planner in the healthcare industry throughout the East Bay and San Francisco areas.

She graduated from University of California, Riverside with a B.A. in Psychology, where she also received a Proclamation of Service from Mayor Ronald Loveridge of Riverside for involvement within the local community. Of equal experiential value is her work as a case manager for community based  programs where she confronted the practical issues that often complicate the delivery of services to those in need. She earned a Masters in Social Work from California State University, East Bay with an Emphasis in Community Mental Health. Leticia is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the state of California (LCSW#77386).

She is a strengths-based, solution-focused practitioner, who believes in the internal strengths of people and communities. She enjoys running, weekend hikes, dancing to live music, cooking, and laughing with friends and family.

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Karla Amanda Brown

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Have you found it hard to shift into love after feeling disconnected from others… disconnected from yourself?

If you’re like the hundreds of people I’ve worked with, you’re probably asking yourself, “What is wrong with me?” As you read this, take a moment to check in with the energy produced inside of you.

Do you feel motivated to seek further? I am sure the response is “no.”

Instead, experiment with questions such as: What’s right with me? How do the pains I am living with actually make sense? Am I ready to release the heaviness I have been carrying for too long?

If you’ve taken a bit of time to reflect, I’m sure you’ve got some feelings showing up.

We must feel to heal.

This is where I can be useful to you. You may have not learned to feel in a way that moves you forward. I am available to journey with you in order to discover what exactly it is that you need for optimal growth and healing.

Just as you have, I too have traversed this ball called earth. Along the way, I have learned from the people who accompanied me and helped me to transform stuck behaviors and unhelpful, shame-producing beliefs into understanding, contentment and joy.

My personal experiences have helped me to dedicate my professional life to learning about humans, the ways we hurt one another and the ways we hurt ourselves. With this knowledge, I serve as a guide to help people to hurt less and to feel the richness of life, walk in gratitude and enjoy connection with others again or for the first time ever.

If you are interested in what I am sharing, here is info about the people with whom I do my best work:
– Couples plagued by oppressive forces outside of their relationship; couples for whom difference is a major factor contributing to the experience of pain and disconnection (race, culture, nationality, ethnicity, age, health, trauma history, religion, sect, class, caste, etc.)

– Individuals in group psychotherapy who desire to experience connection with others who have experienced some of the same trials and triumphs. With curiosity and willingness to explore the depths of thoughts and emotions in the company of others, the healing impact of groupwork is exponential.

– Individuals in one-on-one therapy who have experienced a myriad of traumas, abuses or neglect and are interested in connecting more deeply with themselves, in order to shape the truth-filled story of their life. Symptoms related to complex post traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD), dissociative identity disorder (DID), bipolar disorder or chronic pain conditions (fibromyalgia, arthritis, migraines) will be present.

I use a blend of modern neuroscience and ageless wisdom to support the work I do, which is focused on helping my clients to restore clarity of mind, connection with others and live as energized human beings with creativity, calm and courage.

Please use the fields below to send me a message. I look forward to discovering if we’re a good fit for one another as you move towards meeting your health and happiness goals.

May light and love be yours today, tomorrow and forevermore.

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