Licensed to practice in California and accepts 38 insurances. Specializes in Anxiety, Grief, Trauma and PTSD and 8 more.
(she/her)
I believe we're endlessly creative and resourceful as human beings — we have to be, if we're going to keep showing up in a world that includes real suffering. Over the years, we all find ways to cope. Some are healthy and sustaining. Others work for a while, until they don't — because life stretches us past our limits, or because some part of us simply isn't willing to keep silencing our own voice, harming ourselves, or staying in relationships and patterns that no longer serve us. That's often where the real work begins: building a deeper relationship with yourself — one rooted in awareness, trust, and self-respect, rather than the inner critic that so many of us carry. I'm Gwendolyn, and my work centers on helping people reconnect with themselves and understand their own inner world (and the people in it). I often work with clients navigating grief, trauma, life transitions, and the impact of addiction — whether their own or that of someone close to them. Together, we'll work on quieting the inner critic, learning to trust yourself again, and supporting your nervous system so that calm feels more accessible. I also believe healing doesn't only happen through talk — creativity, nature connection, self-expression, and spiritual practices are often just as vital to the process, and I welcome them into our work together.
I know that beginning therapy can feel vulnerable, and my goal is to make our first meeting feel as warm and informative as possible. I will want to hear what has brought you here, what you have been carrying, and what you are hoping might feel different in your life. I also will go over with you what to expect from therapy and give you a sense of how we can address your concerns through our work together.
What sets my work apart is my integrative approach which honors the whole person and the systems of family, culture, and society in which we all exist. I bring warmth and compassion alongside clinically grounded tools to create personalized and effective care. I am able to hold space for both the immediate and the long-term — addressing current concerns while also building understanding about how early challenges and past traumas shape the ways we cope, so that those patterns can become healthier and more sustaining today. And finally, I bring an appreciation for the importance of embracing life's hardships while also remembering to celebrate the moments of connection and growth.
I enjoy working with clients who don't have it all together, or maybe even feel that things are falling apart - but who are willing to meet life's challenges with self-reflection and an openness to learn and grow. My ideal clients may be facing each day while struggling with anxiety or a persistent sense of not being enough. Many are adjusting to a major life transition, such as starting college, parenting teens, experiencing an empty nest, or navigating fresh loss. These transitions may be complicated by past trauma, the effects of addiction, or relationship dissatisfaction. What my clients share is not a single struggle, but a common desire — to move through life's challenges with greater awareness, to feel more at home in their own bodies and nervous systems, and to feel connected to their life again. Whether you are grieving, growing, repairing, or simply trying to find your footing again, I would be honored to walk alongside you.
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
Amerihealth Administrators
Arlo
AvMed
Carelon Behavioral Health (Commercial)
Centivo
Cigna
Cigna - HealthEZ
EAP:UnitedHealthcare/Optum
Evernorth
Golden Rule
GTEB
Harvard Pilgrim/UnitedHealthcare
IHSS Healthy Workers
L.A. Care Covered
L.A. Care Covered Direct
L.A. Care PASC-SEIU
Optum
OptumHealth Complex Medical Conditions
Oscar
Oxford
Sharp Health Plan
Surest (formerly Bind)
Sutter Health Plan
Tufts Health/Cigna
United Medical Resources
UnitedHealthcare Life Insurance
UnitedHealthcare Shared Services
UnitedHealthcare StudentResources
UnitedHealthcare/Optum
As a person-centered therapist, my first priority is creating a space where you feel genuinely seen, heard, and accepted — exactly as you are. From that foundation of trust and understanding, we can build our work together.
Through a somatic lens, we give attention to what's happening physically in order to discover how emotions live in the body, build tools for self-regulation, and strengthen inner knowing. We also look at how the brain and body work together to shape our responses to stress, trauma, and connection. This body-centered approach helps clients feel grounded and supported as we go deeper.
Trauma-informed care is at the heart of how I work with every client — a foundation I see as essential to building trust and holding space for life's more intense experiences. As an EMDR-trained therapist, I draw on this powerful, evidence-based approach when appropriate to help process unresolved trauma and integrate an affirming view of one’s self and one’s life.
Grief is one of life’s most profound and often least supported experiences. I offer a companioning approach to grief therapy, walking alongside those anticipating a loss or navigating life in its aftermath. I draw on current research and trauma-informed care to support client well being during the grieving process, and address more complex forms of grief, such as a sudden loss, or the loss of someone with whom there was a complicated relationship.
Compassion means "to suffer with" — it's the practice of bringing mindful awareness and loving-kindness to the places in ourselves and others that are hurting. In my work, I've found it to be a key ingredient in creating the safety and permission needed for real learning and growth to happen. I often teach these practices directly in session, since developing this capacity — especially toward oneself — is a powerful tool for learning to stay present and loving with yourself, rather than criticizing, collapsing, ruminating or acting out.