About
This is your life, you get to choose how you live it.
Therapy is a way to dedicate specific time and focus toward stepping into the life you dream of with expert help and guidance.
Can you go it alone? Of course! But, honestly, has that been working for you? How much longer do you want to wait while you try and figure it out alone? What will it cost you to continue to throw darts into the dark of your future?
This isn’t about convincing you into therapy, though in general it helps. It is about helping you understand that you can accomplish your goals; it doesn’t have to take a lifetime, and you don’t have to do it alone. You wouldn’t pull your own tooth or set your own bone, so why go it alone when it comes to your thoughts and feelings?
Your therapist is here to help you discover yourself, learn the skills you need to reclaim control of your life, and support you along the way. This isn’t about some cookie-cutter way of telling you to live or just sitting and listening to you in hopes you’ll feel better once you vent. You have friends for that.
Therapy is about identifying your specific needs, creating goals for meeting those needs, and giving you targeted feedback and skills to get there.
While we can’t promise results (because you must be willing to do the work consistently over time), we are committed to supporting you, teaching you and giving you honest feedback and direction along the way.
If you’re willing to challenge yourself so that you can improve your life, then this is the place for you.
About Shelley
My passion is to support you in living your life to your fullest. I never (ever) get tired of hearing my clients have epiphanies, breakthroughs, and make powerful shifts in their life. I love hearing when something helps them feel confident, strong and whole.
My specialty lies in treating anxiety, trauma, and complex relationship issues. I have supported hundreds of clients in reducing or eliminating their mental and emotional health symptoms. Some of the other benefits that my clients have reported are the following: increased confidence & performance, improved relationships with loved ones and returning to a more balanced peaceful state of mind.
I’ve learned to understand that the process of change can feel hard, but through active and evocative conversations in therapy, you can find your own motivation for change on your terms. In therapy, I won’t tell you what to do or how to feel but instead I help you find your own motivation and skill that supports making the change you want.
Originally from Mexico City and fluent in Spanish, I am bilingual and bicultural allowing me to serve a diverse population. I have a Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Alliant International University and a Master’s degree in Sociology from San Diego State University. I use my knowledge of social systems, culture, and relationship dynamics to bring a unique perspective into the room with each client.
My goal is to support you in the (potentially messy) place you are now and jointly map out how to get to where you want to be. I like to say that just because an issue is complex, it doesn’t have to be complicated. My therapy style can be described as easy-to-understand and compassionate, directive and encouraging.
When you’re in my office, you enter a judgment free zone where together we unpack the messiness that life’s journey is offering you right now. Ahh yes, sometimes unpacking requires you to sort out what you want to keep and what you wish to discard — should you wish to.
As a strength-based and solution-focused therapist, I look for your already existing strengths so you can leverage them to make powerful shifts in your relationship and your life.
For over nine years, I have been supporting individuals, couples and families as they improve their interpersonal skills, their relationships with one another, and reach their goals.
Over the years, I have served countless clients who are high achievers running multimillion dollar companies, local business owners, CEOs, and people in rewarding yet high demanding careers who by day run the show but by night feel the pressure to perform.
My desire to provide you with best possible outcomes for treatment has led me to use the most effective evidence-based practices including CBT, DBT, EMDR the Gottman Method and Motivational Interviewing (MI). MI supports you to move away from a state of (painful) indecision and uncertainty toward finding the motivation to make powerful decisions and accomplish your goals on your terms.
If you’re considering treatment and would like to learn more about how my style applies to you, give me a call for your FREE 20-Minute consultation 619.876.2163. If you reach my voicemail, please leave a message; your phone call will be returned as soon as possible.