Adults Therapists in Santa Cruz, CA

Embarking on the journey of psychotherapy is a courageous and empowering act. My intention is to assist you in recognizing, respecting, and building on your strengths, and improving your capacity for self regulation. Through this partnership, I will assist you in bringing unconscious faulty core beliefs to the light of mindful awareness, engaging your wisdom and compassion. I will work with you collaboratively to address and navigate through your pain, your perceived limitations and stuck places, which are your growing edges. This demanding and enlivening work can improve your quality of life, and expand your capacity for joy and happiness.

Hello! My name is Murphy. I believe you are the expert on your own life & I’m here to help you on your path. I have a toolbox of skills available as you bravely strive to overcome mental health challenges. I’m here to be your partner & helper in achieving stability, safety & satisfaction in your mind & in your relationships. I support teens & adults addressing anxiety, depression, & trauma, to improve their mental health. I’m warm, compassionate & easy to relate to. I am a social justice advocate & my work is gender affirming & neurodiversity affirming.

I am a licensed marriage and family therapist with a masters in counseling and a commitment to helping my clients reach their full potential. I provide engaged and compassionate therapy to families, adults, children, teens, and couples in a safe, nurturing environment. Whether you are dealing with a specific challenge, such as grief or a rough spot in your relationship, or you simply want to find more balance in your life, therapy can provide new tools and a fresh perspective.

I trust that challenges, and our responses to them, hold immense wisdom AND we can really struggle with trauma, longing, patterns, or overwhelming emotions. In the work of getting curious about this stuff with you, I use my self awareness and clinical knowledge to support you in being known and attending to your heart. I love using imagination and dreams, gesture and the body, and just talking, to understand what's at the heart of your therapy. My intention is to support healing, and that your work will enable clarity, choice, the freedom to keep growing.

I offer virtual, phone and nature walk therapy to teens and adults. I provide a calm, non-judgmental, supportive space to help clients process depression, anxiety, grief, trauma, stress, relationships and life transitions. In doing so, my clients develop self awareness and work through difficult emotions to find their peace and joy! Rather than sitting in an office we meet at a local hiking trail or beach and walk during our session. Being immersed in nature and moving the body while talking provides many additional benefits to the therapeutic process and feels more natural.

I like to work with people of all ages. Often with adults I am interested in getting beyond everyday conversation into deeper layers of self, incorporating an inward focus of the body, mind and spirit. I am eclectic and offer a strength-based approach to help with depression, anxiety, transitions, relationship challenges, overall stuckness and other challenges. My approach is humanistic and compassionate, providing the support needed to get through hardships into a more empowered, creative and celebratory self.

Listen to your life. See it for the fathomless mystery it is." - There is great benefit to be found from tuning into your heart and mind. What are these voices saying to you? Do you sense a disconnect between your desires in life and the person you present to others? Are you a spiritual person but you don't find this impacts your daily life? It is my aim to create a safe and welcoming space where one feels known and accepted just as they are. When one feels accepted, one is able to share more and more of their journey, including the painful parts. Feeling deeply heard & understood is a starting point toward transformation.

Asking for support is not always easy. Whether you are looking for counseling, for resources, or hoping to book a training, I can support you. My clinical practice serves children, teens, and adults struggling with trauma, anxiety, depression, gender identity development and exploration, neurodiversity (ASD and ADHD), grief and loss, transitions, and much more.

I work collaboratively with authenticity, empathy, and humor to create a safe, non-judgmental space where patients can confront their inner conflicts. I help adults and families with addiction, attachment issues, body image, depression, eating disorders, grief, trauma, and substance use. My warm, person-centered approach uses trauma-informed cognitive behavioral therapy and EMDR therapy.

I believe in the capacity for people to make incredible change and growth in their lives. But it isn't easy! Regardless of the particular challenge you may be facing, with the right support, you can experience happiness and fulfillment in your life on a daily basis. I have worked in the helping profession for fourteen years, and have helped hundreds of people make changes they didn't even know were possible. I love to help my clients, and hope to have the opportunity to help you!

Kaila brings a warm and welcoming energy to her practice at Pacific Coast Therapy. She understands that entering into therapy can often feel overwhelming and acknowledges the courage it takes to come to therapy and begin a journey towards growth and healing. Kaila works with adults, adolescents (13+), families, and couples. She offers a safe and trusting place to process trauma and grief.

Looking for a therapist and asking for help can be one of the most challenging aspects of starting the therapy process. I believe the core of therapeutic work is the relationship between the client and the therapist. Through my friendly demeanor and approachable disposition, I strive to create a collaborative and supportive environment in which clients look forward to their therapy sessions.

I specialize in child therapy, individual therapy, and relationship counseling. I work with children and adults to realize goals that will support healthy behavioral patterns, and I work with family systems to promote interconnectedness. I offer a variety of tools that will support you to develop effective emotional regulation tools, communication skills, and to help you to recognize your inner strengths. Every person is unique, and therefore therapy should be as well. We can explore what is going on in your life right now so you can build resiliency in the face of challenges.

I help adults who are overwhelmed by anxiety and depression and struggle with trauma, grief, and loss. Using mindfulness, self-compassion practices, CBT, and EMDR, I help them enhance their inner skills to navigate adversities and strengthen their capacity to stay grounded. Through our work together, my clients regain a sense of ease and inner peace and rediscover joy and meaning in their lives.

Megan leads with hope and curiosity to empower her clients to grow into their best selves. She works collaboratively with clients in order to understand them as a whole person, not just their problems. Megan believes patience, authenticity, and transparency are essential to build trust and safety in the therapeutic relationship. Megan specializes in working with adults and youth who identify as neurodivergent and/or on the autism spectrum, as well as LGBTQ+ individuals. Megan works with clients who are coping with depression, anxiety, PTSD, and relationship struggles.

I feel strongly that we have the capacity to heal and thrive within the context of safe relationships. For this reason, I am passionate about offering therapeutic services to assist in exploring strengths, gifts, and complex challenges. At this time I work with adults and adolescents seeking therapy for a range of issues including relationship challenges, depression, anxiety, trauma, and parenting.

I specialize in couples therapy and trauma. Many couples struggle with communication and come into therapy wanting to get out of escalation and better navigate conflict. I help couples feel more connected and attuned to one another. I also work with adults struggling with anxiety, eating disorders, depression, and trauma. I integrate the latest trauma therapy treatment approaches that go deeper than just traditional talk therapy. Including internal family systems and attachment focused EMDR.

Welcome! I work with youth and adults using a strength-based, humanistic approach to treatment. It is my belief that YOU are the expert and that it is my job to help you develop your inner strength and knowledge in order to feel better and live a more fulfilling life. My approach involves integrating mind, body and spirit in order for you to take the insight that you receive in therapy and put it into direct action in your life. It would be my pleasure to work with you. I also offer tele-health sessions and movement workshops. Please message me or check out my website to find out more. www.centerforembodimentmedicine.com

Feeling STUCK? I'd like to help. Maybe you're struggling with an important relationship, tired of feeling stressed or depressed all the time, wondering why a past trauma keeps haunting you or why you continue to do those things that keep you from being the person you want to be. My clients are teens and adults who are seeking greater satisfaction and meaning in their lives. People see me for different reasons--healing, growth, life transitions, clarity. Whatever the problem that brings you to therapy, you'll find my office to be a safe, supportive and accepting space, a sanctuary.