Therapy with Jessi

Mindfulness-Based | Trauma-Informed

LGBTQ+ Affirming Therapy

Hi! I’m Jessi.

I’m a psychotherapist and Brainspotting practitioner working in Oakland, Berkeley, the greater San Francisco Bay Area and Online.

I specialize in supporting individuals who struggle with issues related to self-worth, self-criticism, and low self-esteem, including, depression, anxiety & perfectionism. As well as LGBTQ+ clients with sexuality and gender identity related issues.

After working with me, my clients report feeling more grounded, whole, and confident in their own skin. They feel more connected in relationships and are better able to navigate life transitions, and stress.

>> Read more about me

Befriend Your Mind

The way we relate to ourselves is key to our wellbeing.

However, in the face of hardship and failure we are often our own worst enemies.

I help my clients develop greater self-acceptance and self-compassion so they can walk through life with more confidence and resilience.

Feel more confident in your own skin

Do Any of The Following Resonate With You?

On the outside, you seem as though you have it all together…But on the inside you feel stressed-out, anxious and overwhelmed
You are driven to do more and be more… and you beat yourself up for not meeting your own high standards or the expectations of others
You’re a high achiever but you struggle to find meaning and purpose
You engage in harsh self-scrutiny and judgement and you fear being disapproved of by others
Your relationship has become a source of stress and you want to feel more connected
You don’t feel good enough as you are

If so, I can help.

Services

I offer individual, relationship, adolescent and group therapy services to help you better understand the source of your distress, cultivate a compassionate connection with yourself and others, and develop strategies to lead a more satisfying and meaningful life.

+ Individual Therapy

Whether you're seeking support for depression, anxiety, stress, a relationship issue, or something else, I'm here to help. I work with individuals in my Oakland office and online.

+ Relationship Counseling

Create healthier relationships with your partner(s) and family members. Together, we can work on developing new communication skills so that you can navigate relationship shifts and conflicts, or build more intimacy and trust.

+ Self-Compassion Group

Learn transformative skills to better handle difficult emotions, soften the inner critic, and cultivate a calmer and kinder mind.

+ Brainspotting & Trauma Therapy

Somatic therapy and Brainspotting offer alternative approaches to deepen our healing process. Rather than simply "talking about" our trauma, these tools help us dive in deep to access and release maladaptive thoughts, beliefs and behaviors resulting from trauma. The result is lasting change and nervous system regulation.

+ Queer Counseling

I provide queer and gender affirmative therapy to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) individuals & couples in Oakland and Berkeley California and Online.

+ Online Therapy

Want to work with me but my office is out of your way? I offer virtual therapy via secure video sessions. You can access therapy from the comfort of your home or wherever is convenient for you.

My Approach

+ Mindful

Mindfulness-based therapy involves bringing awareness to what is arising in the moment with an open, curious and accepting attitude.

I can guide you to slow down the racing thoughts of your mind so that you can get in touch with your internal experience and dive beneath the content of your story.

We can work on turning towards and “being with” your present experience, rather than attempting to cling to, fix, resist or avoid pleasant or unpleasant inner content.

These practices can help you gain both insights and skills to better cope with life’s challenges.

+ Compassionate

I draw upon Compassion-Focused Therapy and Self-Compassion practices to help you cultivate a warm, caring and accepting attitudes towards yourself and others.

Developing self-compassion helps reduce shame, self-criticism, depression, and anxiety, and increases self-esteem, sense of self, and the ability to cope with challenging emotions and difficulties.

Compassion-based interventions can help you develop the capacity to soothe and motivate yourself in times of difficulties, and loosen the grip of self-critical thoughts.

These interventions can support you in developing greater intimacy with yourself, which in turn enhances your interpersonal relationships.

+ Somatic

Body-Oriented or Somatic Psychotherapy utilizes the experience of your physical body as an essential source of wisdom and insight.

The body is “the royal road to the unconscious,” and can help you access memories, emotions, and beliefs that you cannot access through thoughts or talk therapy alone.

By non-judgmentally tracking facial expressions, gestures, posture, tone of voice etc., I can help you to become more aware of your unconscious material, core beliefs, insights and needs.

This approach is also one of the best ways to help people suffering from trauma to regain a sense of inner safety so that they can re-enter and re-inhabit their bodies more fully.