What We Treat
Open Heart Clear Mind is a trauma and wellness center specializing in Trauma, PTSD, Anxiety, Depression and Grief.
I have extensive experience treating anxiety, depression and severe trauma symptoms in children, adults, and families. I am a compassionate, proactive and here to support you by offering everything from individual therapy, group therapy, after-hours phone check-ins, and even comprehensive psychological testing.
Specializing In
Trauma / PTSD
Trauma is often associated with harrowing events such as war or natural disasters. However, any distressing event falling beyond the scope of normal human experience can be considered traumatic. Trauma is not solely defined by the nature of the event itself; rather, it is contingent upon an individual’s response to it. What may be traumatic for one person may not have the same impact on the next. The complexity of trauma lies in its enduring effects—it extends beyond the initial occurrence and alters the structure of the brain. Once the brain undergoes changes and enters a constant state of fight, flight or freeze, maintaining focus, experiencing joy, or finding pleasure can become challenging until the trauma is healed.
EMDR
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR, is an evidence-based mode of therapy that is very successful in helping people who suffer from trauma. It also helps treat anxiety, panic, depression, and many other emotional issues. Compared to traditional talk therapy, EMDR brings relatively quick relief for most people. The EMDR technique uses a natural function of the body, rapid eye movement (REM), as its basis. Using the REM eye movement pattern, troubling memories are accessed and reprocessed by the brain. This helps you heal traumatic memories so that you can experience a more peaceful state.
Anxiety & Depression
Treating depression and anxiety are two of our specialties. Some symptoms of depression and anxiety overlap including irritability, difficulty concentrating, and problems with sleep. Symptoms of depression can include decreased energy, feelings of hopelessness and persistent feelings of sadness, worry, or emptiness. Symptoms of anxiety can include a racing heart, dread, and panic.
Grief & Loss
Grief is the normal response of sorrow, emotion, and confusion that comes from losing someone or something important to you. It is a natural part of life. Grief is a typical reaction to death, divorce, job loss, a move away from friends and family, or loss of good health due to illness. The more significant the loss, the more intense the grief. However, even subtle losses can lead to grief. For example, you might experience grief after moving away from home, graduating from college, changing jobs, selling your family home, or retiring from a career you loved.
Other Areas of Treatment
Life Transitions
Coping Skills
Parenting Issues
College Students
Bipolar Disorder
Mood Disorders
Stress
Familial Relationships
Relational Issues
Self Esteem
Chronic Illness
OCD
How We Treat
At Open Heart Clear Mind, we want to change the way people view mental health. We go beyond simply learning coping skills or just putting out the fire of the week. Together, I want to understand who you are, how you perceive the world, and how you can learn to fully embrace and live the life you want to live.
At OHCM, We believe that everyone’s needs are different, and don’t subscribe to “one size fits all” We are trained and educated in various therapy models and utilize the model that is most applicable and likely to provide success.
Therapy Models Utilized
EMDR
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Mindfulness
Life Coaching
Family Therapy
Psychodynamic Therapy
Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
Humanistic Therapy
Parent Work
Process Oriented Therapy
Aversion Therapy
Conflict Resolution
Treating depression and anxiety are two of our specialties. Some symptoms of depression and anxiety overlap including irritability, difficulty concentrating, and problems with sleep. Symptoms of depression can include decreased energy, feelings of hopelessness and persistent feelings of sadness, worry, or emptiness. Symptoms of anxiety can include a racing heart, dread, and panic.
Substance use is one way that people find to cope with the impacts of trauma, stress and anxiety. If you or a loved one are experiencing shame, relationship challenges and/or mood changes as a result of your substance use, Trauma Therapy CA can help you to engage in the reflection needed to access and resolve the core issues. Trauma treatment is often recommended following intensive substance use treatment so we work with many residential and intensive substance use treatment programs to help their clients to transition back to the community.
Parents and children today face numerous challenges and transitions and it can be difficult to find support when faced with distance from extended family members and scarce community resources. Parents are fatigued dealing with financial uncertainty and medical crises. Children are faced with distracting social media and a culture that encourages instant gratification which can impact their self-esteem. Mental health issues can make it difficult to help your children to become happy, well adjusted, and responsible adults.
Trauma is often associated with harrowing events such as war or natural disasters. However, any distressing event falling beyond the scope of normal human experience can be considered traumatic. Trauma is not solely defined by the nature of the event itself; rather, it is contingent upon an individual’s response to it. What may be traumatic for one person may not have the same impact on the next. The complexity of trauma lies in its enduring effects—it extends beyond the initial occurrence and alters the structure of the brain. Once the brain undergoes changes and enters a constant state of fight, flight or freeze, maintaining focus, experiencing joy, or finding pleasure can become challenging until the trauma is healed.
Bipolar disorder is marked by extreme shifts in mood which can include trouble managing everyday life tasks at school or work, and difficulty maintaining relationships. Symptoms can include extremely elevated moods followed by episodes of depression which can last for several days or weeks. If you are looking to stabilize your mood and relationships, we can offer specialized services to assist you.
Abuse can come in many forms including emotional, physical and sexual abuse. If you are experiencing feelings of confusion, fear, hopelessness, or shame, it’s natural to be in denial at first. Seeking support in a non-judgmental healing environment is crucial. Some subtle signs of abuse include isolating you from family and friends, attempting to make you question your own sanity, and receiving subtle or overt threats. You may develop anxiety, chronic pain, insomnia, and social withdrawal or loneliness. If your life is in immediate danger, call a support hotline or 911 to get help now.
General symptoms of sleep disorders may include difficulty falling or staying asleep, daytime fatigue, unintentional changes to your sleep/wake schedule, irritability or anxiety, and lack of concentration. Sleep problems be caused by or can lead to depression, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, irritability, weight gain, and impaired work or school performance.
Grief is the normal response of sorrow, emotion, and confusion that comes from losing someone or something important to you. It is a natural part of life. Grief is a typical reaction to death, divorce, job loss, a move away from friends and family, or loss of good health due to illness. The more significant the loss, the more intense the grief. However, even subtle losses can lead to grief. For example, you might experience grief after moving away from home, graduating from college, changing jobs, selling your family home, or retiring from a career you loved.
Some feelings of worry, insecurity, and doubt about a new relationship is normal, particularly in the beginning of a new relationship even if your current partner doesn’t show any signs of manipulation or dishonesty. If you find yourself constantly questioning yourself and your partner and are engaging in sabotaging behaviors such as picking arguments with your partner, pushing them away, and testing their boundaries, you may be experiencing mental health symptoms which can be caused by past relationships or make it difficult to place trust in someone again.
Non-judgement is at the heart of our treatment of addictive disorders, followed closely by evidence-based therapy. Addictive disorders can often be an ineffective means of coping with traumatic experiences. Finding effective coping and enhancing motivation for change within a safe non-judgmental environment can be life altering. We will collaborate as needed with each client’s medical professionals to ensure a safe journey toward more effective coping.
Self-harm is when somebody intentionally damages or injures their body and may be linked to bad experiences that are happening now or have happened in the past. Some examples include being bullied, negative self-views, struggling with stress, anxiety or depression, physical or sexual abuse, or difficulty controlling emotions. This behavior can be related to feeling misunderstood or mistreated in the past.
We use tests and other assessment tools to measure and observe behavior to arrive at a diagnosis and guide treatment. This is an opportunity to help you understand your functioning better and to determine the best way to help you and develop a treatment plan. We sometimes call these an opportunity to “look under the hood” at your social and behavioral decision-making processes.
Who We Treat
Our therapists bring their own experience and approaches to treat various mental health issues and empower clients with therapy geared toward making lasting change. We provide therapy for children, adolescents, couples, families, and adults
Available Session Types
Every situation is different and we are available to support you in the best way possible. For your convenience, we offer the following types of sessions.
- Individual Therapy
- Couples Therapy
- Group Therapy
- Mandated Therapy
