Divorce Therapists in Santa Barbara, CA

Insightful, caring psychotherapy for couples and individuals Working with clients from Montecito, Santa Barbara and surrounding communities, Dr Shafer, PhD brings sensitivity and humor to his psychodyamic work with individuals and couples. Dr Shafer (Bob) has been in practice for more than 40 Years. Nonjudgmental, open to a variety of perspectives and personalities, he specializes in providing compassionate support to those trying to make better sense of life's challenges.

I am a licensed clinical psychologist in 4 states, (California, Florida, Virginia, Maryland). If you are motivated to do your part, what I will bring to our relationship is my passion for psychology which is as fervent today as over 30 years ago when I hung out my first shingle. My job will be to figure out how to help you arrive at your pinnacle given your unique temperament and situational challenge. Your job will be to do the work.

If you are browsing this site, you are likely looking for a safe, competent person to help you sort through a difficult issue. I am a warm, highly experienced therapist with specialties in the areas of eating disorders, codependency, addiction, attachment trauma, and spiritual abuse. I understand the complexity and depth of disordered eating and body-related issues. Also, if you suspect you may have a parent or significant figure in your life with a personality disorder, I can help you heal the attachment trauma and empower your true self. I also work with those navigating relationship with church and spirituality.

The Hosford Clinic is a university-based community clinic that provides affordable mental health services to people in the Santa Barbara area (including Isla Vista, Goleta and Carpinteria). We offer counseling and treatment services for individuals, couples, adolescents, children, and families. These services are evidence based, culturally-responsive and low-cost. We provide a safe space for you to talk privately about your worries and concerns and can help by: *asking questions that help you see your problem in new ways; *teaching you effective ways to cope; *coaching you in ways to improve your work, school, and home life.

You are smart, hardworking, and psychologically-minded. Your wellbeing is important to you and objectively, most things in your life are going well. Yet, feelings of anxiety, sadness, loss, emptiness, or disappointment gnaw at you. From time to time, you think about your past, from your adolescence to relationships and choices. These things aren’t directly related to your life now so you wonder why they come up at all but you cannot reconcile them. Because you are busy with work, family, and staying connecting, these emotional blips get lost. You don’t make time to reflect and feel. You just keep plugging along … until next time.

It is an honor to accompany individuals into the psyche where our deepest wounds are sometimes hidden. Healing energies can often be found in those depths, stimulating growth toward a more whole, authentic and satisfying existence. Sometimes the pain is on the surface, and symptom relief is necessary to allow the individual to return to a more effective functioning level. This can be accomplished through a combination of cognitive approaches (i.e., Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy) and body-centered approaches (i.e., focusing, embodied dream work, mindfulness).

My goal as a psychologist is to help you live a more meaningful, vital and fulfilling life. I provide compassionate and effective therapy that will help you learn new skills and launch you in the direction you want to be moving in your life. Foundational to my approach is a collaborative partnership, where positive transformations evolve in a warm, safe environment. I have worked extensively with clients who struggle with depression, anxiety, eating concerns and unhealthy habits. I also work well individuals who are going through major life transitions, relationship problems or want to revitalize their lives.

In-person and telehealth available. I work with adolescents, adults and couples. We all experience anxiety, depression, anger, stress and sometimes the trauma that can occur in our families, our relationships, our friendships, our workplaces and our everyday lives. Some of these stressors are triggered when we break-up, begin a new relationship, start a new job, start at a new school etc. Some individuals need to be sat with and have a space held for them, some are looking for collaborative support and guidance on their life's struggles.

Welcome to my practice. I have been in practice since 2007 and have been featured on ABC, NBC, and KCAL as an expert psychologist. I work primarily with men who have hit “rock bottom” and would like help getting up. These men are often in crisis when we first meet. The issues I address are typically related to unhealthy sexual behaviors, infidelity, financial recklessness, gambling, drugs/alcohol, dishonesty/lying, and relational conflicts. My therapy approach is a combination of psychoanalytic, cognitive-behavioral, and the 12-Step recovery model. I also share insight from my own painful but redemptive recovery journey.

Are you and your partner fighting more? Do you feel distant and disconnected, lonely and truly concerned about the state of your partnership? Has infidelity got you feeling angry, depressed or anxious and is this getting in the way of your daily life, depriving you of any joy and happiness? It's time to reach out and get some professional help because trying to figure out these kinds of difficulties can be a daunting task when undertaken alone or when trying to clear out the cobwebs that make resolving partnership issues feel insurmountable. Get the help you need...now!

I'm a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who specializes in Somatic Psychotherapy. Somatic simply means "relating to the body" and in therapy this means that I have been uniquely trained to integrate the wisdom from our biology into treatment. Our bodies relate information that, should we choose to listen, can support our overall mental health. This way of working can have profound effects on anxiety, depression, trauma, addictions, and disordered eating. The clients that receive maximum benefit from my approach have an open mind about how the body influences thoughts, not just how thoughts influence the body.

Welcome to Shoreline Counseling. As a licensed therapist and clinical supervisor, I specialize in relationship therapy for those struggling with connection and communication both individually and in relationally. We explore past experiences and current challenges with a collaborative approach inviting increased self-awareness and insight. I am wholeheartedly supportive and curious in sessions. In truth, I genuinely look forward to seeing my patients each week to provide them a space to exhale.

Are you feeling anxious, irritable or sad? Are you having difficulty in your relationships at home or at work? You don't have to go through this alone. We can often struggle in a life situation or circumstance and just feel stuck. What I know is that it is almost always possible to feel better and gain clearer insights into what makes us happy and what gets in our way. My approach in therapy is both humanistic and psychodynamic, with the core principles of mindfulness and self-compassion at the heart of my practice.

Are you feeling stuck in a situation or a circumstance that is keeping you from living a whole and healthy life? Whether it was something recent, something that happened a short while ago, or something you have carried your whole life, you keep thinking about this thing or feeling it in your body. It is impacting your daily life, keeping you trapped in old patterns that are no longer serving you, and you would like to heal that part of you and move forward. By being here on this page, you have already taken a step in your healing journey. How about taking one more brave step to reach out and begin a conversation with me?

I believe seeking therapy is a sign of strength. Our deepest self wants to be known and find a way through life's challenges. Our deepest self wants to connect and create and build a sense of well-being. Whether you are feeling "off" internally (anxious or depressed), or need to discuss relationship problems, I provide a warm and thoughtful presence. I believe the best way to grow is to feel supported to engage with relational patterns, troubling and repetitive thoughts, and unfinished business from the past that is getting in the way of building your future. I will engage with you to help you move forward in your life.

My ideal client is someone who acknowledges their approach towards challenges is no longer working for them, and wants to change. This could be a couple, struggling with communication and wondering why the same fight happens over and over. This could also be an individual who can't seem to get out of their own way and struggling to understand themself. This may also be a parent having issues with overwhelm and frustration. People behave in ways that keep them disconnected from themselves and others, and I am here to assist you in clearing the debris of your past, so you can face the present and future fearlessly.

I tend to be most helpful to intense, high-functioning adults struggling with mood or anxiety symptoms or significant life transitions who are striving toward personal achievement, balance between work and relationships, and a sense of well-being. I may draw on various approaches according to the problem you are dealing with and my experience with what may benefit you. These include cognitive, psychodynamic, interpersonal, and psychoeducational approaches. I may propose different ways of looking at or handling situations. I may suggest in-between session reading or homework assignments.

I help people come home to themselves. Life's challenges can leave us questioning our intuition and values and impact our self-worth, relationships, and well-being. Perhaps this is due to a difficult upbringing, perhaps due to trauma and loss, or it may be due to external stressors such as marginalization and oppression. I help clients to find their voice, re-discover self-trust, uncover inner wisdom, and cultivate strength and balance. Together we will explore your experiences, nurture inner resources, and identify and resolve destructive patterns that impact your relationships.

My roots as a therapist and healer have seeded over the past thirty-five years, bringing substance and depth to my one-on-one sessions with couples and individuals. During this time, I have maintained a private practice, which has always consisted of process-oriented consciousness work -- a means by which to enter safely and deeply into the inner landscape of the psyche for positive and real world change. My results-oriented approach to psychology is derived from the commitment to a conscious process and the intrapsychic relationship one can access when choosing to turn toward--and look at--oneself.