(she/her)
Hi there, I'm Daylin. I began my career in mental health with a deep passion for supporting others through the challenges we all face. As a clinical social worker and human, I believe in the inherent dignity and worth of every person. My approach to therapy is rooted in a humanistic and attachment based approach where I priortize the therapeutic alliance to create a safe, compassionate, and judgement-free space. I show up with curiosity, care, and respect for your lived experience, so that talking about the heavy topics can feel less overwhelming. Together, we will work to uncover how early experiences and unconscious relational patterns influence your current life, helping you gain insight and develop more authentic, flexible, and compassionate ways of relating to yourself and others. Whether you're struggling with anxiety, depression, trauma, difficult relationship patterns, or a desire for greater self-understanding, I’m here to walk this journey with you. It is my hope that our time together fosters reconnection, hope, and healing — both within yourself and in your relationships. I would be honored to walk alongside you, collaboratively holding a safe space where all parts of you can be gently explored, deeply understood, and fully accepted.
In our first session, our main focus will be to establish a foundation of trust and safety. From there, we’ll explore what brings you to therapy and what changes you’re hoping to see in your life. Together, we’ll identify practical steps and strategies that feel right for you. I’ll regularly invite your feedback so we can adjust our work together and ensure it continues to meet your needs.
I have experience working with children, adolescents, and adults in a variety of settings including clinical research settings, college counseling centers, community mental health clinics, and school-based settings across San Diego. My clinical work includes providing crisis intervention and supporting high-acuity clients experiencing severe emotional distress, safety concerns, and complex mental health conditions. I am experienced in conducting risk assessments, safety planning, and delivering trauma-informed care. I have worked extensively with individuals from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds and approach my work with cultural humility and curiosity. My clinical training and skill set are grounded in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and Gestalt therapy. My clinical focus includes helping clients process complex trauma while deepening insight into underlying patterns, relational dynamics, and early attachment experiences through a psychodynamic and attachment-based lens. I support clients in strengthening emotional regulation, increasing self-awareness, and developing more adaptive ways of relating to themselves and others. I also work with clients and families to navigate acute stressors, systemic barriers, and major life transitions, with an emphasis on stabilization, resilience, and long-term, meaningful change.
I am best positioned to serve individuals who have experienced trauma or are currently struggling with anxiety, depression, or significant life transitions. I especially enjoy supporting people who want to deepen their self-understanding by exploring how early childhood relationships continue to shape their present experiences. I enjoy working with individuals who struggle with people-pleasing or perfectionistic tendencies, as well as those who are ready to learn healthier ways to communicate, set boundaries, and express their needs. My clients are typically motivated to gently explore deeper emotional wounds, increase emotional awareness, and develop a more compassionate and authentic relationship with themselves.
Other specialties
I identify as
Attachment-based
I work from a psychodynamic lens to explore how early childhood relationships and experiences impact current thoughts, feelings, patterns, and behaviors. I have experience helping clients to identify and heal attachment wounds to develop more secure relationships within themselves and with others.
Child Parent Psychotherapy
I have several years of experience working with youth (ages 4-21) and their families in school based and community mental health settings. I use a family systems approach, informed by Bowen’s family systems framework, which focuses on understanding and improving the emotional functioning of the parent-child relationship within the broader family system rather than isolating the child’s behavior as the sole problem. This approach helps empower youth and parents to manage their own emotional processes, which in support's a child’s healthy development.
Cognitive Behavioral (CBT)
I have extensive training using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to treat anxiety, depression, self esteem, and body image related concerns. Together we will identify unhelpful thinking patterns which negativley impact your mood. We will explore different strategies to challenge these thoughts and replace them with more balanced, strength based ones. Over time, we will work toward replacing core schemas that fuel low self-worth to develop healthier self-compassion and acceptance.
Dialectical Behavior (DBT)
I have used Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) effectively to support individuals struggling with severe emotion dysregulation, suicidality, substance use, and disordered eating. DBT helps clients build skills in mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness, enabling them to tolerate intense emotions without turning to harmful behaviors.
Gestalt
Gestalt therapy is helpful for supporting individuals who struggle to identify or connect to current emotions. I utilize present focused techniques to help you build insight around thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations in order to support self expression.