Licensed to practice in California and accepts 22 insurances. Specializes in ADHD, Attachment Issues, Autism and 8 more.
(she/her)
Clients say this provider is
Hello! My name is Olivia, I’m a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and am dedicated to supporting people heal from C-PTSD and regain the ability to feel the full spectrum of their emotions and aliveness. I love supporting people to feel safe in their bodies and heal from childhood trauma that is holding them back from being fully present in their lives now. Trauma does not have to be a life sentence, healing is possible and I can be there to support you every step of the way. All parts of you are welcome here, you can show up exactly as you are. I believe therapy should be a place where you can take off your mask and be real about your pain, what has happened to you and what you long for. I was called to this work after beginning my own healing journey and I trust in the innate capacity each one of us has for wholeness, joy and a life worth living. It takes a lot of courage to reach out and ask for help and I am honored to meet you in this moment and walk alongside you on your healing journey. You don't have to do this alone. I have a Masters Degree in Integral Counselling Psychology from the Institute of Integral Studies which specialized in cultivating healing at the level of mind, body and spirit. In my free time you can find me dancing, playing harp or hand pan, hiking, practicing yoga, making art or being with my loved ones. I recharge by meditating and spending time in nature. I am queer and experienced with working with the queer community and with people living alternative lifestyles such as non-monogamy.
Our first session is a chance for us to get to know each other, and for me to learn about you. I’ll be asking you a lot of questions to better understand what brings you to therapy and what your goals are, while creating a low-pressure, supportive space. I'm looking forward to getting to know you! Please share at your own pace—there’s no expectation to open up about anything you’re not ready for. As a trauma informed therapist, I invite you to feel into whatever pacing feels safe for you to share what you've been through. Sometimes we can feel the urge to share everything all at once, which can be healing and can also sometimes leave us feeling vulnerable or dissociated after. I will be tracking your nervous system and we might do a grounding activity during or at the end of the session to help you leave our sessions feeling resourced and not depleted. The success of therapy largely depends on the therapeutic relationship so this first session is largely focused on supporting you in feeling safe and comfortable to open up. It's normal to feel nervous and a little bit awkward, everything is welcome in our sessions and you can show up exactly as you are.
My approach is warm, compassionately direct, collaborative, and authentic. I am compassionately honest and can serve as both a mirror and a gentle witness, reflecting patterns I notice from a place of deep curiosity. I believe we all have the innate capacity to heal and grow, and I’m here to guide and support that process. I create a space of radical acceptance and non-judgment, where all emotions and experiences are welcome. My approach incorporates Somatic Therapy (including EMDR, Somatic Experiencing and Brain spotting) and Internal Family Systems (IFS), all evidence-based approaches for working with trauma and PTSD. I have years of experience working in inpatient settings with clients facing high-acuity mental health challenges, including addiction and eating disorders. I view many of these struggles through a trauma-informed lens, supporting clients in safely processing and integrating unresolved experiences. I believe true healing is grounded in the body and extends beyond the cognitive. I bring an embodied presence to our work, informed by years of yoga, meditation, and my experience as a dancer. I help you gently turn toward the parts of yourself that may have been avoided or pushed away, fostering insight, healing, and integration.
I love working with women and queer folks who are wanting to heal from childhood trauma. You may appear high functioning but feel like you're drowning inside; struggling with anxiety, insomnia, dissociation or finding it difficult to connect with others. You may be highly sensitive and feel everything on a deep level, but struggle with feeling like you either feel nothing or feel too much at once. Maybe you've tried CBT therapy and have a lot of intellectual insight about what happened to you - but you're still struggling. You've been through a lot and are carrying a great deal of shame and may find it very hard to love yourself or offer yourself compassion. You want to feel safer and more alive in your body and to feel more deeply connected to yourself and others. It can be hard for women and queer folk to feel safe in the society we live in, I can be an ally for you in your healing journey. I am a good fit for people that are looking for once a week therapy that are not currently in a crisis in which there are significant safety concerns. If you are struggling with feeling actively suicidal or have an extensive history of psychiatric hospitalizations, this will not be a good fit and I recommend you look for a therapist who can support you in the way that you are needing. I am a good fit for people that can commit to weekly therapy consistently and are committed to their healing.
Cash - $175 per session
Aetna
Aetna - Allied Benefits
Aetna - ASR Health Benefits
Aetna - Lucent Health
Aetna - Luminare
Aetna - Moda
Aetna - WebTPA
Aetna – HealthEZ
All Savers
AvMed
Golden Rule
Harvard Pilgrim/UnitedHealthcare
Optum
OptumHealth Complex Medical Conditions
Oscar
Oxford
Surest (formerly Bind)
United Medical Resources
UnitedHealthcare Life Insurance
UnitedHealthcare Shared Services
UnitedHealthcare StudentResources
UnitedHealthcare/Optum
Brainspotting is a body-focused therapeutic approach that can help you explore and process experiences that may feel difficult to put into words. It incorporates focused visual attention and can include bilateral stimulation, similar to techniques used in EMDR, to support the processing of emotions, memories, and body-based experiences. In Brainspotting, we work together to identify a “brainspot”—a specific place in your visual field that may be connected to an emotionally meaningful experience or body sensation. Rather than needing to repeatedly describe or analyze what happened, you can gently notice what comes up internally while staying connected to the present moment. Depending on your needs, bilateral stimulation such as alternating sounds or other forms of left-right stimulation may also be incorporated. Brainspotting may be helpful when you feel stuck with a particular emotion, memory, pattern, or body response. It has been studied primarily in the context of trauma and PTSD, and early research has found promising results. For example, a preliminary study found significant reductions in PTSD symptoms following six Brainspotting sessions.
Internal Family Systems (IFS) is a compassionate, nonjudgmental approach that can help you understand the different “parts” of yourself and the roles they play in your life. You may notice that one part of you wants to move forward while another feels afraid, another becomes critical, or another tries to keep you busy or in control. IFS views these parts as meaningful and adaptive rather than something that needs to be judged or eliminated. IFS describes three broad categories of parts: Exiles, Managers, and Firefighters. Exiles often carry painful emotions, memories, or beliefs from earlier experiences and may hold feelings of fear, shame, sadness, or unworthiness. Managers work proactively to keep you safe and prevent those vulnerable parts from being hurt, often through strategies such as perfectionism, control, people-pleasing, or staying busy. Firefighters respond when distress becomes overwhelming and may turn to more immediate ways of escaping or soothing difficult emotions. IFS also recognizes that underneath these parts is your Self—a calm, compassionate, curious, and grounded part of you. Therapy can help you access this Self-energy so that you can develop a different relationship with your parts, rather than feeling controlled or overwhelmed by them. In our work together, we can gently explore what your parts are trying to communicate and what they may be protecting. Instead of fighting difficult emotions or trying to get rid of certain aspects of yourself, you can learn to approach them with curiosity and compassion. IFS may be helpful if you struggle with anxiety, self-criticism, relationship difficulties, trauma, emotional overwhelm, or feeling conflicted within yourself. You don't need to have a trauma history to benefit from exploring your internal world. The goal is not to get rid of your parts, but to better understand them, appreciate the ways they have tried to help you, and develop greater internal balance, self-compassion, and choice in how you respond to life.
I use Somatic Experiencing (SE) as a body-centered approach to help clients better understand and work with the ways stress, anxiety, and difficult experiences can show up in the body. Sometimes we may understand something intellectually but still feel it physically—such as tension, restlessness, feeling on edge, shutting down, or having difficulty feeling safe and relaxed. Somatic Experiencing focuses on developing greater awareness of these physical sensations and learning to respond to them with curiosity rather than judgment. We may gently notice sensations, emotions, movement, breathing, or changes in your nervous system while staying within a pace that feels manageable and supportive. SE can be especially helpful for people who have experienced trauma or chronic stress, but you don't need to have a specific trauma history to benefit from learning how your body responds to stress and emotion. The goal is not to force you to revisit painful experiences, but to help you develop a greater sense of safety, regulation, and connection with yourself. I take a collaborative, gentle approach and tailor somatic work to your individual needs. We move at your pace and focus on building skills that can support you both in therapy and in everyday life.
I use an attachment-based, relational approach to help you understand how your early relationships and life experiences can shape the way you connect with others, respond to conflict, and experience closeness, trust, and emotional safety. This can be especially helpful for folks who have insecure attachment styles such as anxious, avoidant and disorganized. Our relationships can influence the beliefs we develop about ourselves and others—such as whether we feel worthy of love, whether we can depend on others, or whether it feels safe to express our needs. Sometimes these patterns can continue into adulthood even when they no longer serve us. In therapy, we work together to explore these patterns with curiosity and compassion rather than judgment. We may look at relationship dynamics, emotional needs, boundaries, communication, and the ways you respond when you feel hurt, rejected, overwhelmed, or disconnected. The therapeutic relationship itself can also become an important space to experience trust, safety, and genuine connection. My goal is to provide a supportive environment where you can better understand yourself, develop healthier relationship patterns, and feel more confident expressing your needs.
I am currently completing specialized training in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), an evidence-based trauma-focused therapy that can help people process difficult or distressing experiences that continue to affect them in the present. EMDR is best known for treating trauma and PTSD, but it may also be helpful for anxiety, difficult life experiences, and other experiences that feel emotionally “stuck.” Research has found EMDR to be effective in reducing PTSD symptoms, and it is one of the trauma-focused therapies strongly recommended by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense for the treatment of PTSD. One of the things clients often appreciate about EMDR is that treatment does not necessarily require repeatedly talking in detail about everything that happened. We begin by understanding your history, identifying your goals, and developing skills to help you feel grounded and emotionally prepared. When you are ready, EMDR uses a structured process to help your brain reprocess distressing memories and reduce the emotional intensity associated with them. EMDR is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach. We move at a pace that feels safe and manageable for you, and we work together to determine whether it is the right treatment for your needs.
2 ratings with written reviews
August 18, 2026
Olivia is a calming presence. I appreciate her patience and willingness to shift gears when I'm feeling out of sorts, and I feel safe opening up to her about what my weird little mind is thinking. I would definitely recommend her if you are seeking help :)
June 10, 2026
She’s the first person on Grow who has listened to me. She knew what I was talking about when talking about flashbacks, night terrors, body responses.