Orinda Therapist
for Adults & College Students
In-person in Orinda, CA
Online throughout California
Relational, depth-oriented therapy for anxiety, life transitions, self-esteem, and relationship patterns.
Therapy in Orinda, CA
You're the person other people count on, and you always have been. From the outside your life looks like it's going well, with good work, people you take care of, and nothing anyone would think to worry about, but on the inside there's a heaviness that won't go away and a worry that stays with you even on days when nothing is actually wrong. You get through each week feeling like you're just going through the motions, and you can't say why.
You've probably tried to think your way out of it, and because you're thoughtful and know yourself well, you can probably explain where a lot of it comes from, but understanding it hasn't made it feel any better. That's a hard place to be, and together we can work on what understanding alone hasn't reached.
If You Live Here, You Might Recognize This
Orinda, and the East Bay more broadly, is a community that values competence, responsibility, and holding it together. Those qualities can be real strengths. They can also make it hard to admit that something isn't right.
Many of the people we work with are thoughtful, capable, and self-aware, and they often feel like they should be okay by now, as if wanting more or struggling privately is ungrateful or self-indulgent. It isn't. Living around so much achievement leaves very little room for what's really going on underneath, and therapy is where you get to put that down.
A Different Kind of Therapy
Our approach is relational and depth-oriented. We listen to what you say, and we also pay attention to what's underneath it: the feelings you've learned to play down, the patterns that started early and still affect your relationships and your days, and the ways you've adapted that once made sense and may not be helping you anymore.
This isn't a quick fix, and it isn't techniques or homework. It's work that changes something deeper, not only how you cope but how you feel about yourself and your life. We keep a small caseload on purpose, so every client gets our full attention.
In-Person Therapy in Orinda
Our office is at 23 Altarinda Road in Orinda. This central, quiet location makes East Bay therapy easy to reach from Lafayette, Moraga, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, and the rest of Lamorinda. Many clients find that being in the same room adds something, and if you're close enough to come in, that's often where we begin.
Online Therapy Throughout California
For clients who want more flexibility or live outside the East Bay, we offer secure online therapy to anyone in California.
Online therapy is real therapy. The work is the same, and so is the relationship. Many people find it easier to be honest at home, without the drive or the rush back into the day afterward. You can take a breath, make a cup of tea, and stay with whatever came up. On our end, it feels the same as sitting in the room: a real person paying close attention, who remembers your story and stays with you over time.
OFFERINGS
We specialize in working with adults and college students who are navigating:
Anxiety & Depression: Including high-functioning anxiety, perfectionism, and the kind of anxiety that's hard to explain because your life looks fine on paper.
Life Transitions: Career changes, relationship shifts, grief, moves, and the disorientation of not knowing who you are in a new chapter.
Relationships & Boundaries: People-pleasing, difficulty saying no, codependency, patterns in relationships that keep repeating despite your best intentions.
Self-Esteem & Identity: Persistent self-doubt that survives success, difficulty feeling like enough, the voice that critiques everything you do.
Therapy for Young Adults & College Students: The quarter-life uncertainty that doesn't have a name, the pressure to have it figured out, the loss that comes when the structure of school disappears
Midlife Transitions: Identity shifts, empty nesting, career pivots, and the quiet grief that can come with getting exactly what you planned for.
Is This the Right Fit?
This work tends to be a good fit if:
You're capable and self-aware, but still stuck in the same patterns
You feel something is off but can't fully name it, or you can name it but can't change it
You've tried to think your way through it, and that hasn't been enough
You want depth, not surface-level strategies or scripted techniques
You're looking for a therapist who will actually know you, not just nod at you
You don't have to be in a crisis to reach out. Many of the people we work with aren't. They come because something has been with them for a while, and they're ready to change it.
Frequently Asked Questions
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The most common things I see are anxiety, often high-functioning anxiety that doesn't show on the outside, alongside relationship patterns, life transitions, and a persistent sense of disconnection or unfulfillment. Many clients describe a feeling that something is off but they can't explain why, given that their life looks okay on paper. That's a real experience, and a real reason to come to therapy.
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No. Many of my clients aren't in crisis, they're carrying something that's been there long enough that they're ready to look at it. A low-grade heaviness, a pattern that keeps repeating, a sense of going through the motions. That counts. You don't need to wait until things get worse.
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My approach is relational, depth-oriented, and trauma-informed. I work with what's underneath, the emotional patterns, early experiences, and nervous system responses that shape how you show up in your life and relationships. I don't assign homework or offer scripted techniques. The work happens in the relationship, and it tends to go places that haven't been accessible through insight alone.
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It depends on what you're working on. Some clients work with me for six to twelve months; others stay longer because the work keeps deepening. I'll always be honest with you about where things stand. There's no arbitrary endpoint, the work is done when you feel genuinely different, not just better informed.
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For most of the work I do, yes. The research supports it, and my experience does too. Some clients actually find they can go deeper via online sessions, there's something about the comfort of their own space that lowers the walls. If you try it and it doesn't feel right, we can revisit.
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The best way to find out is a conversation. I offer a free 20-minute consultation, not a sales call, but a chance to get a real sense of how I work and whether it feels like the right fit. There's no pressure in either direction.
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Bountiful Health is considered in-network with a few providers. For current fee & insurance information, visit the Fees & Insurance page.
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Trauma-informed therapy recognizes that many of the patterns we develop, emotional reactivity, difficulty trusting, people-pleasing, disconnection from ourselves, often have roots in earlier experiences of overwhelm, loss, or not feeling safe. It doesn't require a dramatic trauma history. It simply means I approach your experience with an understanding of how those early adaptations still live in the body and in your relationships, and I work with that in a way that doesn't rush or retraumatize.
GET IN TOUCH
When you're ready,
complete the Consultation Request Form.
From there, we'll set up a time to talk.
