Find a Therapist in Playa Del Rey, CA

Everyday life stressors and tasks can feel overwhelming when you are dealing with anxiety. It can show up as perfectionism, people-pleasing, panic, and overwhelm, or never being able to rest. I help clients break out of these anxious cycles and feel more at peace and resilient as they face day-to-day life. Together, we uncover what is underneath the anxiety, change your relationship to it, and find real tools and techniques to stop letting your anxiety run your life. My approach is always nonjudgmental and collaborative in order to provide a safe place to openly process your emotions and experiences. I use a client-centered approach and evidence-based techniques to help reduce stress and anxiety.

What makes therapy work is the relationship and connection between the therapist and client, as well as the skills and technical expertise the therapist brings to the table. I am supportive, caring and committed to being totally present, meeting people where they are right now, hearing them in their own terms. Relationships between individuals, couples and families have become so stressful in these crazy-making times. I see my job as helping clients untangle life's challenges and assisting them in getting in touch with their own inner resources. I have extensive experience in working with really complex family situations. I assist individuals and couples in strengthening and repairing relationships, navigating through life's transitions and dealing with issues related to aging. I specialize in working with children & adolescents dealing with emotional problems and offer support and counsel to parents. I help children, adolescents, adults and families who are dealing with emotional pain due to anxiety, depression, stress, anger, grief and loss. My office is in Ojai, surrounded by beautiful oaks, and offers a supportive and calming environment in which to do important psychological healing work.

I believe dynamic, lasting change happens when we look beyond surface-level symptoms and understand the deeper patterns driving our lives and relationships. Whether you are seeking therapy as an individual or with a partner, my approach is grounded in psychodynamic theory and relational depth. As a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) in California, I work with you to explore the underlying thoughts, emotional patterns, and past experiences that shape how you see yourself, manage stress, and connect with others. For Individuals: Life transitions, anxiety, or ongoing feelings of disconnect often stem from unconscious patterns developed over time. Rather than relying solely on quick-fix coping tools, we go deeper. I offer a collaborative, thoughtful space to help you develop authentic self-awareness, process unresolved emotional conflict, and cultivate a stronger, more resilient sense of self. For Couples: Relationships are complex, and even the strongest partnerships encounter communication breakdowns, trust erosion, or repeating cycles of conflict. My approach to couples therapy focuses on uncovering the relational dynamics and attachment needs underneath the argument. Rather than assigning blame, we work together to rebuild emotional safety, foster deep understanding, and create a renewed connection built on clarity and mutual respect.

Hi, my name is Erica Wicke and I specialize in individuals, couples, and family therapy. I have been licensed for 9 years and have worked in a number of different settings both inpatient and outpatient. Not only am I interested in hearing your stories. I am here to join with you in overcoming what has led you to seek therapy.

“You’re Not Broken—You’re Stuck. Let’s Get You Unstuck.” As a therapist in practice for 20 years, I’ve worked with individuals and couples from all walks of life, each with their own unique story. I don’t believe in a one-size-fits-all approach. Your experiences, background, trauma, and relationships are yours alone, and your therapy should reflect that. I’m a proactive therapist. This means we won’t just talk—we’ll work together to understand what’s holding you back and build tools to move forward. Whether you’re navigating anxiety, grief, life transitions, or relationship struggles, I provide a tailored, compassionate space where growth can happen. For couples, I help partners break through communication barriers, heal from betrayals, and rebuild connection. I understand how vulnerable it can feel to come to therapy together, and I meet you both with respect, curiosity, and practical strategies that get results. I offer sessions in-person in Los Angeles and virtually for clients across California. Clients often tell me they appreciate my warmth, honesty, and ability to gently challenge old patterns. You don’t have to do this alone. Together, we’ll work toward the life and relationships you want.

Feeling overwhelmed by work stress, burnout, or compulsive screen use? I’m a Marriage and Family Therapist Associate from Pasadena who works with high-demand professionals—including physicians—and their partners. I help clients restore balance, strengthen relationships, and address tech addiction, OCD, and anxiety. Together, we’ll create practical strategies to manage stress, build healthier habits, and regain control over your life. If you’re at a crossroads in life, many times therapy is the place you figure out where to go next. Sometimes this includes reflection on where you've been and what is most important to you now. I am here to walk that path with you -- in a nonjudgemental and loving way, as you find a more satisfying way to be in the world and with yourself. With specific training in family and couples therapy, I enjoy supporting couples and families as they navigate the challenges and joys of being together.

I welcome you to come as you are. I consider our collaborative therapeutic relationship an authentic meeting of equals. I understand you as essentially good, worthy, unique, and capable. In this relationship, your voice matters. And if you're not feeling confident just yet, I'll help you cultivate your authentic voice. I'll help you see your existing strengths and skills, and we'll build on them for further growth. I approach healing and growth holistically and appreciate you as multi-faceted: feeling, thinking, physical, social, and spiritual. Together, we'll consider how to bring these various aspects of you into balance to create your experience of enhanced well-being. My approach to our work is both insight-oriented: we'll seek to understand what's driving your current challenges, and solution-focused: with these new understandings in mind, we'll explore new choices to effect the change you seek. We'll explore the interplay between what's conscious to you now and underlying dynamics that may not yet be fully conscious. We'll aim to bring subconscious dynamics into your fuller awareness to empower your informed agency and choices that are more attuned to your authentic needs and goals. We'll pay closer attention to your habitual thought patterns and consider how unexamined thoughts can sometimes trigger feelings and reactions that haven't been helpful for you. We'll consider expanded perspectives for more integrated, effective views of yourself and others. With mindfulness practice, you'll shift gears from a hurried running on autopilot to a more steady, intentional curiosity and presence to what's unfolding in the here and now. Our therapeutic relationship will serve as a tool for learning about your relationship style and patterns. I draw therapeutic perspective largely from a trauma-informed attachment lens, exploring how your earliest attachments, especially with family of origin, shaped your internal emotional blueprint and expectations about relationships, and how that underlying script has played out, often repeatedly, in your adult relationships. Understanding these early influences allows us to rewrite relationship narratives with informed choice, hanging on to the parts that work, letting go of those that don't. I also draw influence from existential, sociological, systemic, and feminist lenses, exploring the reciprocal interplay between internal landscapes and external social landscapes and influences. My work with couples is influenced by a trauma-informed attachment lens and draws from training in Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy (EFT), Gottman, and Non-Violent Communication (NVC). I bring humility, respect, and genuine interest to our collaboration. My style is down-to-earth, non-pathologizing, and interactive, with healthy doses of humor (when appropriate). I welcome diversity of all kinds and embrace a social justice perspective. I've been in practice as a psychotherapist since 2000.

I work from a compassionate, non-judgemental, client-centered perspective. I believe that the unique rapport that develops between client and therapist is one of the major components of emotional and psychological healing. Creating a therapeutic environment in which you--the client--can feel safe and explore your feelings is my primary objective.

I have been providing psychotherapy for adults, adolescents, children and families for over 17 years. I can help you find relief. My private practice offers a safe and open atmosphere free of judgement and grounded in authenticity. Here you can experience heightened self-acceptance, emotional understanding and tolerance, greater mind-body health, a new sense of empowerment, significant personal growth, and ultimately freedom.

Trauma shows up in our lives in silent yet indelible ways. Whether it’s via dissociation, anger, self-isolation, or substances, we all have unique ways we learn to unconsciously protect ourselves, so that the past can never repeat; so that we can never be hurt in the same ways ever again. As such, the ghosts from our past continue to haunt us in invisible, unexpected ways. They are unfortunately too insidious to defeat by ourselves. Psychoanalytic therapy can help put these ghosts to rest once and for all. Let’s dream together of new possibilities for your future. I am licensed in CA, NY, NJ, and MA. I love what I do, and I am committed to the health and well-being of everyone I have the privilege of supporting in psychotherapy. I welcome you to reach out for a free consultation.

Are you wanting relief from anxiety, relationship struggles, or feeling stuck? With over 20 years in practice, I help clients move beyond managing symptoms to understanding the deeper patterns that keep them feeling overwhelmed, disconnected, or unsure of themselves. My style is warm, respectful, honest and direct. I work collaboratively with clients to explore how thoughts, emotions, and behaviors interact, and how these patterns developed over time. When we understand the why behind our struggles, it becomes much easier to create meaningful change. In our work together, I’ll offer insight, practical suggestions, and support while helping you reconnect with your own inner strength and wisdom. My goal is not only to help you feel better in the moment, but to leave therapy feeling more empowered, self-aware, and confident navigating your life and relationships. I offer a free 20-minute call so we can talk and see if we are a good fit.

IF YOU WANT THINGS TO BE DIFFERENT, YOU HAVE TO DO THEM DIFFERENTLY! Life has a flow. When the flow is blocked, we suffer. Suffering takes form in many ways and affects every aspect of our lives. Trauma, adverse life events and sudden tragic circumstances all contribute to suffering. The manifestations appear as drug and alcohol dependence, depression, and anxiety. The consequences can be physical in nature, such as chronic pain and stress, mental in nature, such as isolation and fear, and spiritual in nature, when all hope seems lost. My approach is to help you unblock the natural flow of your life. Regain balance and empowerment in the areas of romance, finance, sex and spirituality. Combining EMDR and Mindfulness therapies, I can help you find your FLOW: Fulfillment, Liberation, Ownership and Well-Being. You can choose a better way to live. You can live the life you choose. Now is as good a time as any!