Therapists
You know exactly what you would say to a client, and it does not help when the client is you.
For therapists who hold other people's hardest material all week and have nowhere to set down their own. A room where you get to be the client, and nobody expects you to run the session.
Overview
Where this usually starts
Therapists usually arrive able to describe what is happening to them with real precision. They know the name for it, they know what the research says, and they know what they would suggest if a client brought it in. None of that has made it lift. Understanding something from the other chair is not the same as being inside it, and trying to be your own therapist mostly produces a very well-informed version of the same stuck place.
Then there is the work itself. You spend the day attuned to other people, holding material that does not stay neatly inside the hour, and then you go home to a family or a friend group where you are often the one people bring things to. That strain rarely gets named, because it is supposed to come with the job. Here it does not have to be managed. It only has to be brought in.
At a Glance
- Shelley Davidescu, LMFT, 17 years in practice
- In person in Bankers Hill, San Diego
- Telehealth Monday through Friday across California
- Free 15-minute consultation
Individual sessions are $210, or $325 for 90 minutes. Couples sessions are $225, or $345 for 90 minutes.
Full fees and policiesDoes This Sound Familiar?
The specifics, not a symptom list
Open any line to see how I would think about it with you.
Open any line that feels familiar.
Fit
Who this is for, and who it is not
It is worth knowing before you book, so neither of us spends four sessions finding out.
A Good Fit
- You are a therapist or counselor and you want a place to be the client rather than the clinician.
- You want a therapist who will not be thrown when you name the intervention while it is happening.
- You want a confidential space that is completely separate from your own practice, agency, or training program.
- You are dealing with anxiety, burnout, relationship strain, or something older that your own training has not been able to touch.
Not the Right Fit
- If you need crisis or inpatient-level care, or care that requires psychiatric management, this is not the right setting, and I will help you find the right level of care.
- I do not write letters, evaluations, or reports for licensing boards or employers, and I do not do forensic work.
- If what you want is to talk shop about clinical theory rather than look at your own life, this will be frustrating for both of us.
If you are in crisis, call or text 988. If I am not the right clinician for what you are carrying, I will say so and help you find someone who is.
What We Work On
Three things, in order
Letting someone else hold the frame
For many therapists the hardest part is not the material. It is being in the room without running it. We go slowly with that, and we treat the urge to manage the session as information rather than as something to apologize for.
What the work leaves behind
Compassion fatigue and the weight of particular cases, handled directly. When a specific session keeps returning, EMDR is often the right tool, and I am EMDR certified. We pace it so you are steady for your own clients the next day.
Confidentiality
You know the limits of confidentiality better than most clients, and we still go through them in the first session. Outside those ordinary legal limits, what you say here is confidential under California law, and I do not report to licensing boards or employers.
Questions
Answers to Common Questions
Anything not covered here is worth asking on the free 15-minute consult.
Related Reading
Is it strange to see a therapist when you are one?
No. Being in therapy yourself is an ordinary part of doing this work well, and you do not need a crisis to justify it.
Will you report anything to my licensing board?
No. I do not report to licensing boards or employers, and seeking therapy is not something I disclose to anyone. The standard legal limits on confidentiality still apply, and I explain them in the first session.
What if we already know each other professionally?
Tell me on the free 15-minute consult. Depending on how we know each other, it may still work, or I may suggest someone else, and I will be direct about which.
Can we meet by telehealth from my office?
Yes, as long as you are physically in California and the room is private. Telehealth runs Monday through Friday. In-person sessions in Bankers Hill are limited to one Sunday a month.
What does it cost?
Individual sessions are $210, or $325 for 90 minutes. Superbills are available on request if you have out-of-network benefits.
Free 15-Minute Consult
Fifteen minutes to find out whether this is the right work.
Tell me what is actually going on. I will tell you honestly how I would approach it, and whether I am the right person for it.
In person in San Diego, and by telehealth across California.