LGBTQIA+ Concerns

Joy Linn

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I am honored to be a support to those facing difficulties and challenges in life. I am a compassionate listener with a wide range of clinical skills and expertise. I am culturally-sensitive, trauma-informed, anti-racist, weight-inclusive, kink-aware, poly friendly and queer. My goal is to create a safe space for you and to guide you in exploring your internal world and the root issues to your concerns.

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Anum Rathor

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Anum is a first-generation South Asian American. As a first-generation American, she sees the value in breaking down the stigma surrounding seeking help and the importance of eliminating the negative connotations or assumptions that are attached to therapy. She wishes to be a voice for those that have not found theirs yet. She speaks Urdu, Hindi, and Punjabi fluently and is currently learning Arabic. She enjoys working with adolescents, adults, and couples. Anum believes therapy is about creating a safe space for the patient to open up about what they want to address with no judgment. She is driven to make sure her patients feel comfortable, respected, and validated. Through the use of various evidence-based practices, Anum enjoys working with patients to cater to their emotional needs through the use of. She has experience working with people who have experienced trauma, anxiety, and depression as well as with people who engage in substance use and risk behaviors. She feels lucky to have worked with individuals from various sexual orientations, religious, and cultural backgrounds. She wishes for her patients to graduate from therapy feeling liberated and empowered to take on the world and to be able to process their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in a healthy way.

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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Teen Empowerment Group

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For teens who are survivors of violence, sexual abuse, neglect, bullying, school or community violence, parental substance abuse, who have witnessed violence in their home, or have experienced any other child maltreatment.

This group focuses on self-esteem building, healthy relationships, gaining a sense of community and skills for growth, and helping teens access their own strength and courage to claim a healthy and positive future.

Parents, the reality of teen trauma is painful and overwhelming. Figuring out how to begin the healing process can be confusing. You want to protect your teen and ensure their safety and happiness. When you see your child suffering, it hurts.

We understand, and we are here to help.

Any of this sound familiar in regards to your teen:

– Anxiety or worry

– Falling grades

– Persistent sadness, lack of energy, changes in sleep or appetite, withdrawing from normal activities, or feeling “down”

– Changes in self-care, such as paying less attention to hygiene, appearance, or fashion than they usually do

Our Teen Empowerment Group is hands down the best way to help your teen:

–  Understanding of the symptoms of trauma to support self-regulation

– Develop greater understanding of themselves and their needs in a safe and supportive community so that they can set self-directed boundaries 

– Experience mindfulness-based practices to induce and deepen relaxation 

– Increase self-compassion in order to reduce self-criticism and self-blame

We are here to help your teen engage in the body and mind through arts based expression in order to heal and re-connect with joy and purpose.

NEXT Step? Email our office to schedule a brief phone chat with leaders Melissa or Megan. We would be delighted to answer any questions you have about the group. We look forward to hearing from you!

Expressive arts is an evidence based practice that provides practical tools for healing and emotional growth. Some art modalities we will use include; drawing, painting, collage, mixed media and digital art or photography. No experience or skill with art making is necessary to benefit from art therapy.

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Relational Growth Group for Bodies of Culture

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For 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 leaders 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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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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Perry Clark

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The question is: What is tangling you up? Are you tangled up in anxiety, sadness,& doubt? Are you held by insecurity &uncertainty? Are you slowed by feeling disconnected & getting caught unaware? Have the paths become overgrown and you can’t find or are questioning the sign before you? Growth is about using and building new skills, all of which take time, and nurturing. Growth is about finding solutions that apply to the situation and not just the general world. Both of these are elements of the hope. Hope is something we need to move us through the day, and it does require updating.

We don’t live in isolation, which means it’s very easy to get tangled up and mired in things, situations, people, and feelings that keep us from growing. We need to understand them, so we can cut them away or down, to allow you to move forward with new skills and hope for living.

We don’t learn to tie our shoes or hold a fork instantly. It takes care from those around us to do so, and it isn’t easy. It’s a skill I hope we can find together.

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