Find a Therapist in Playa Del Rey, CA

You may be here because something in your life no longer makes sense the way it used to. Maybe a relationship has been shaken by betrayal or conflict. Maybe you feel stuck, disconnected, anxious, or unsure of who you are or what comes next. Or maybe you know something needs to change, but you haven't been able to change it on your own. I can help you slow things down, understand what's happening beneath the surface, and figure out what to do with it. My style is active, warm, and direct. I won't just sit back and nod while you do all the work. I'll ask questions, help you notice patterns, and sometimes challenge you when I think there's something important you might not be seeing. At the same time, therapy isn't about me telling you how to live your life. My job is to help you understand yourself more clearly so you can make choices that actually fit the person you want to be. We'll pay attention not only to what's happening now, but also to the experiences, relationships, and beliefs that may have shaped how you got here. That can mean exploring old wounds and attachment patterns, and it also means looking closely at what happens in your life today: how you respond when you feel hurt, what you do when conflict gets uncomfortable, what you avoid, and what keeps repeating even when you want something different. There's room in my office for emotion, humor, frustration, uncertainty, and uncomfortable conversations. You don't need to arrive knowing exactly what's wrong or what you want from therapy. We can figure that out together. What matters is that you're willing to be curious about yourself and open to doing something different.

I work with couples, families, and individuals who are interested in improving their relationships, and people who are struggling with strong emotions like anxiety. I believe that the quality of our relationships, both with ourselves and others deeply affects our overall well-being. Healing, in my view, happens both individually and within the dynamics of our connections with others. I recognize that building and maintaining strong partnerships requires effort, but I know that the rewards of healthy relationships are invaluable. I earned my BA from UCSB and my Master's in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University, with a certification in Somatic Psychotherapy. I have also trained at the Boston Graduate School of Psychoanalysis, which has deepened my understanding of how unconscious processes and early relational patterns influence present behaviors. I help clients uncover emotions, thoughts, and patterns affecting their relationships, guiding them toward deeper self-awareness and lasting change. My background as a yoga teacher and trainer for over a decade has shaped my holistic approach, allowing me to integrate somatic awareness and mindfulness into my work. In addition to my psychoanalytic and somatic training, I also use Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) to help clients strengthen emotional bonds and foster secure attachments. This blend of psychoanalytic exploration, somatic awareness, and EFT offers a comprehensive approach to healing and improving relationships. I work with clients both online throughout California and in-person in Santa Barbara.

I am a telehealth therapist specializing in relationship therapy, couples therapy, and adult-child-parent relationships, serving clients in Los Angeles, California, and Portland, Oregon. I work with individuals, couples, and families throughout California and Oregon, including Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Beverly Hills, Bend, Sisters, and surrounding areas. If you’re searching for couples therapy near me, I’m here to help. I support families navigating adult child and parent dynamics by helping clients improve communication, resolve conflict, and build stronger connections. My approach is warm, collaborative, and insight-driven. Click the link to book a free consultation! www.talktomichele.comcontact

It may very well be that our deepest longing and need is for connection. To be heard. To be understood. To be known in our deepest places. To learn to be more connected to the lost neglected parts of ourselves and those we care for. It isn't always an easy road. Perhaps even considering connection sounds intimidating or scary or dangerous. Often it entails letting go of destructive habits. Sometimes we just want to get unstuck. Sometimes, you and I will need to look at old patterns and create new ones. There may be moments of laughing, or crying, or facing hard truths. You may need to take a new path or forge a new future that is unknown. On the other side is the gold, or the jewel, or new life. Through hard work, you can create a more satisfying life, with less pain, less hurt, and less fear. You can live a more authentic life, being fully who you are. More able to love and be loved. More able to move through the world with ease. More forgiving of yourself and others. All along the way, I will be with you.

Are you having problems communicating with your partner? Are you struggling with letting go of bad habits? Are you finding it difficult to stay in the moment when you are being intimate with your partner? I have dedicated my career to helping people live the lives they want to live, and change their life to get closer to their partners. I have a team of highly qualified licensed therapists that work as a team to support our couples at Recovery Help Now, Inc. Recovery Help Now offers online and in-person therapy. We see individuals, couples and facilitate groups (for both men and women). Please feel free to contact Recovery Help Now with questions or concerns. It's time to live your best life.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by anxiety, trauma, relationship stress, or major life transitions, therapy can provide a space to slow down, gain clarity, and begin making meaningful changes. Therapy is collaborative and culturally responsive, grounded in creating a safe and affirming space where you can explore your experiences without judgment. Informed by principles of liberation psychology and social justice, we explore not only individual experiences, but also how culture, identity, and systemic factors influence mental health. Therapy can be a place to process trauma, challenge internalized messages, and reconnect with your genuine self.

I believe that anyone can change, at any time. Everyone faces challenges at different points in their lives, and it is what we do with these challenges that make the difference. I help my clients find their truth, identify and address their obstaclesissues, and move towards the peace and balance that is desired. A person's journey of growth and healing is personal. My approach is non-judgmental, caring, direct, and geared towards the individual and their particular needs.

As a licensed professional clinical counselor (LPCC) with over 10 years of experience, I believe that meaningful change happens when you feel truly seen, supported, and empowered. My approach is collaborative and compassionate—I meet you where you are while helping you move toward the life you want to live. I draw from evidence-based therapies, including eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), exposure and response prevention (ERP), and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), to tailor treatment to your unique needs. Whether you’re struggling with anxiety, obsessive compulsion (OCD), trauma, eating issues, or attention-deficit hyperactivity (ADHD), I use a balance of structure, warmth, and flexibility to help you build awareness, learn effective coping skills, and create lasting emotional growth. Therapy with me is an active and supportive process. Together, we’ll explore patterns that may be keeping you stuck and work toward meaningful, sustainable change—one step at a time. My goal is to help you develop the tools to feel more grounded, confident, and connected both within yourself and in your relationships. If you’re ready to take that next step toward healing, I’m here to help you.

I am interested in what is happening beneath the surface, but I am just as interested in what is happening between us in the room. Therapy with me is relational, engaged, and deeply attentive. I notice the places where you become quieter, move away from yourself, brace, minimize, change the subject, or suddenly come alive. I am listening to what you say, but also to what may be harder to say. I do not approach therapy as a formula or assume that one explanation accounts for everything you are experiencing. Your history matters. Your relationships matter. Your body matters. The larger systems and environments you have lived within matter. I want to understand how all of these pieces fit together in the context of your particular life. I am also not a therapist who sits silently while you do all of the work alone. I will be present with you, ask questions, offer observations, slow us down when something important is happening, and help us stay curious about what emerges. At times that means making connections to the past. At other times it means noticing what is happening in the therapy space with your emotions, sensations, and thoughts. Therapy is a relationship in which there is enough safety, honesty, and room to encounter yourself differently. Change can happen not only through what we understand together, but through what you are able to experience differently while another person is genuinely there with you.

I specialize in supporting adults facing cancer and other serious or life limiting illnesses. With over 20 years in Palliative and Hospice care, I help adults and families navigate through complex medical decisions, challenging family dynamics, and end-of-life concerns. I also work with caregivers and healthcare professionals experiencing burnout and emotional fatigue. When you or someone you love is facing cancer or another serious condition, everything can feel uncertain. Together we can make space for the parts of you that feel exhausted, overwhelmed, or scared, and the ones trying to stay strong, so you don’t have to carry this alone. I help adults and families navigate the emotional impact of cancer and other chronic or terminal illnesses. I facilitate California's End of Life Option Act and help people cope through change, loss, and uncertainty. Whether we are working through grief, anxiety, burnout, or overwhelm, my goal is to help clients find clarity, meaning, and emotional balance.

Our greatest difficulties can be life's greatest gifts (in disguise) if we can learn how to translate their messages. Every problem we encounter has the potential to bring us to a place of greater self-understanding and presents us with opportunities to overcome our own limitations. In therapy, starting from where you are "stuck," we work on developing your ability to deal with problems in such a way that they become opportunities for personal growth. I facilitate a gentle but intense process wherein clients can develop a better understanding of themselves, their behavior and their relationships and create meaningful changes based on personal values. Through therapeutic growth and insight, you are empowered to transform old, damaging patterns into new, healthier ways of living: from sadness to joy, fear to wisdom, anger to strength, loneliness to connectedness, and shame to acceptance. I believe that wellness is a multifaceted experience, encompassing physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of being -- a process of aliveness that comes from your dynamic interaction with the world in and around you. I have a passion for this work and honor and appreciate my clients. I offer a free phone consultation to answer any questions you may have about the services I provide.

Psychiatrist in West Los Angeles, California, providing psychopharmacology and psychotherapy in a private practice setting for adults and older adolescents. I graduated with honors from Swarthmore College. I attended medical school at the University of Pennsylvania, where I won the Kenneth E. Appel Award for excellence in psychiatry and the Robert M. Toll Prize for research in the field of mental health. During medical school, I completed a research fellowship sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health, studying HIV and addiction issues. Originally from the East Coast, I moved to California to complete a medical internship at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). I then completed a psychiatric residency at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute. I became board certified in general adult psychiatry in 1997. From 1998 through 2003, I served as a volunteer clinical instructor in the women’s mental health clinic at the University of California, Los Angeles. In 1999, I completed a two-year fellowship sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in health services and quality of care. I have maintained a private practice in psychiatry since 1996. I see adults and older adolescents individually for psychopharmacology and/or psychotherapy. I love making a difference in people’s lives. I find my work both satisfying and rewarding. I believe people can best realize their potential to grow in supportive relationships; a strong relationship with a therapist can change your life. I also believe that mental illness is a disease of the brain and that medication, when used judiciously, can be enormously helpful in relieving suffering. While I individualize treatment based on your needs and preferences, I stay abreast of the research literature to offer state-of-the-art care that is supported by the most current evidence. I believe in shared decision-making. I strive to make sure that you understand the choices you have, including the risks and benefits of each treatment option.