Hi! My name is Kara (pronounced Car-Uh). I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Somatic Experiencing Practitioner in San Diego, CA.

I joke that I am a “reluctant therapist.” Before starting my own practice, I worked as a social worker in community mental health and social services settings, in foster care/adoption agencies, and in intensive mental health programs for adolescents and adults. I’ve slowly made my way into private practice, where I now work to support my clients in reclaiming their inherent wisdom and aliveness through somatic psychotherapy.

I am trained, first, as a social worker, which means I am curious about the ways the world and all of its systems impact our wellness and ability to thrive. I am critical of the structures and cultures of oppression that inhibit our ability to expand fully into ourselves. I am most interested in the ways our collective brokenness lays the groundwork for individual struggle, and our individual healing is fertile ground for collective healing.

Before I am a therapist, I am a human, with all that entails. I have my own “stuff,” my own life experiences and stories of disconnection, dis-ease, recovery and resilience. I have practiced what I preach, with both missteps and grace. I have personally and professionally evolved with somatic support and hope to continually offer this to others. I believe I can only take my clients as deep as I have gone myself, and I am committed to that continual deepening so I can help my clients access the good stuff of life.

That’s what we’re here for, right?

Beyond therapy, some things I enjoy: gardening, backpacking, anything near the water or mountains, solo travel, new hobbies, old books, and plenty of time with my animals, friends and family. You’ll see little bits and pieces of these in my office or in conversation, and I’m always happy to share more so that you feel comfortable in our work together.

Experience, Training and Specialities

  • -Needing support in managing overwhelming experiences of anxiety, trauma and obsessive-compulsive disorder in daily life

    -Suffering from unresolved traumatic experiences in childhood and/or adulthood that are impacting functioning and relationships

    -Feeling a “fragmented” sense of self and struggling to manage related feelings, thoughts and sensations that lead to overwhelm, despair or unhelpful thinking patterns

    -Hoping to repair painful or conflict-filled parent/child relationships, especially for adult daughters and their mothers

    -Stuck in unhelpful patterns of conflict, emotional reactivity, or rumination

    -Wanting a life that feels good—full of connection, self-trust, enjoyment and ease, even in the midst of the challenges of living

  • -I am a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP), through Somatic Experiencing International; I have completed the three-year curriculum, including 8 modules, case consultation and personal sessions to provide Somatic Experiencing, including touch work, as a service to clients.

    -Severe Mood Disorders: 7+ years of experience working with individuals and families experiencing moderate to severe (acute and chronic) mood disorders, including anxiety, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder

    -Developmental Trauma and Attachment: 10+ years experience working with children and adults who have experienced complex childhood trauma, impacting the attachment system and current relationships

    -Positive Parenting/Positive Discipline approach to working with and training families

    -Trained in/Informed by: Inner Relationship Focusing (IRF), Parts Work, Positive Parenting, Attachment, Somatic Experiencing, EMDR, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Exposure and Response Prevention Therapy (ERP)

  • -Licensed Clinical Social Worker, LCSW 88023, 2019 (Licensed to provide psychotherapy services in the state of California)

    -Master of Social Work (MSW), San Diego State University, 2016

    -Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, University of San Diego, 2010

    Certifications:

    -Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, 2024

    -Somatic Attachment Therapy through The Embody Lab (2023)

    -Positive Discipline Practitioner (2020)