Therapy for real humans
Creative psychotherapy in Oakland, for people who long to feel more fully themselves.
There are moments in life when the ways you've learned to survive no longer feel like the ways you want to live.
Perhaps you're carrying anxiety that won't quiet, grief that has changed the shape of your world, relationship patterns that leave you feeling disconnected, or a growing sense that you've lost touch with yourself beneath years of caregiving, achievement, adaptation, or simply getting through. You may not need someone to tell you what's wrong. You may need someone who can help you listen for what's been true all along.
I offer creative psychotherapy for adults and couples in Oakland, California, and online throughout California. My work is grounded in the belief that healing is less about becoming someone new and more about remembering the person you've always been beneath the strategies that once helped you survive.
About Libra (SHe/her) Ma • Amft #157382
For nearly twenty years, I worked as an interior designer.
I loved creating spaces that helped people feel more at home in their lives, but over time I realized I was being called toward a different kind of work. Long before I became a therapist, I had already begun my own healing journey. I became deeply interested in the ways creativity, relationship, and self-awareness can help us move through life's most difficult experiences. Eventually, I chose to return to school so I could bring together my natural empathy, intuition, and clinical training in service of others.
Today, I work from an existential-humanistic foundation, which means I see therapy as an opportunity to explore not only symptoms, but meaning. Together, we make space for the questions that often arise during seasons of transition, grief, anxiety, relationship challenges, identity shifts, or simply feeling disconnected from yourself. Rather than following a rigid agenda, I meet you where you are each time we sit down together. Healing unfolds differently for everyone, and our work grows from the relationship we build.
Trauma-informed
LGBTQ2S+
Neurodivergent-affirming
BIPOC-affirming
Education & Trainings
M.A. Counseling Psychology, Expressive Arts Therapy
California Institute of Integral Studies
2025B.S. Psychology
California Institute of Integral Studies
2022
HeartMath Certified Practitioner
Clinical Certification in Stress, Anxiety & Self-Regulation Biofeedback
2025Certificate in Somatic Embodiment & Regulation
Linda Thai
2026
What I believe
These are the values that shape every session.
Areas of practice
Things we can explore together
Click through to read more about each
Populations served
I work with adults and couples from diverse backgrounds and identities, both in person in Oakland, California, and online throughout California.
I have particular experience supporting:
Adults navigating life transitions
Women in perimenopause
Adults with late-diagnosed ADHD
Women with ADHD
Highly sensitive people
Performers and creatives
Queer couples
Adults exploring spirituality and meaning
People experiencing grief and loss
Caretakers
People pleasers
Overachievers
approaches & Modalities
What I bring to our sessions
Click through to read more about each of the evidence-based practices I specialize in
Services & Fees
Individual Psychotherapy
50 min · in person or online
$180
Therapy Groups
Offered periodically throughout the year
Varies by group
Couples Therapy
75 min · in person or online
$250
Consultation
A complimentary 15-minute call to see if we're a good fit
Free
-
Credit cards accepted
Payment processed securely through Jane App
-
A limited number of sliding scale appointments are available.
Please feel free to ask about current availability.
-
I currently have limited openings for clients using:
Optum / United Healthcare
Carelon
Medi-Cal
Please contact me to discuss current availability and eligibility.
-
For virtual sessions, I ask for at least 24 hours' notice if you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment.
For in-person sessions, I ask for 48 hours' notice.
The first late cancellation or missed appointment is generally treated as a grace period with a reminder of the policy. Repeated late cancellations or no-shows may be charged the full session fee.
What to expect
Beginning therapy can feel both hopeful and uncertain. My goal is to create a space where you feel welcomed, respected, and free to show up exactly as you are.
Before our first meeting
Before our first meeting, you'll complete intake paperwork through my secure client portal. I'll review everything beforehand so we can spend our time getting to know one another rather than simply gathering information.
First Sessions
Our first few sessions focus on understanding what brings you to therapy, learning about your life and relationships, and beginning to build trust. Rather than trying to solve everything immediately, we'll take time to understand your unique story and develop a shared sense of what feels most important.
Ongoing Relationship
From there, therapy becomes an ongoing collaboration. Most clients begin by meeting weekly, and together we'll regularly check in about what feels most supportive as your needs evolve.
I don't expect you to fit into a particular model of therapy.
Instead, I draw from a variety of approaches in service of one central question:
What will best support this person, at this moment, in becoming more fully themselves?
Sometimes that's conversation.
Sometimes it's understanding how your nervous system responds to stress.
Sometimes it's exploring a Dream.
Sometimes it's noticing what your body already knows.
Sometimes it's creating an image for something words cannot yet hold.
The methods may change.
The intention remains the same:
To help you deepen your relationship with yourself so that you have greater freedom, greater choice, and greater trust in your own inner wisdom.
Resources
Creativity is at the heart of my practice.
When I say "creative," I don't simply mean making art. I mean expanding the imagination. When we can imagine something different, we create choice. And when we have choice, we become more resilient.
Whether we are talking, working with dreams, noticing what your body is communicating, exploring an image, or simply sitting with something that has never had words before, creativity becomes a way of making the invisible visible. It offers another language for experiences that cannot always be explained logically.
Below are a few of the ways I express creatively in the digital realm.
FAQs
Questions people often have before they reach out.
-
Not at all.
Expressive Arts Therapy isn't about making beautiful art or having artistic talent. It's simply another way of exploring experiences that can be difficult to put into words.
Sometimes that might look like drawing, writing, collage, movement, storytelling, or simply imagining an image or metaphor together. Sometimes it looks just like conversation.
Everything is offered as an invitation, never an expectation.
-
You don't have to.
Many people come to therapy knowing only that something isn't working anymore, or that they're carrying something they can't quite name.
Our first conversations are simply about getting to know one another and understanding what brings you here. We begin wherever you are.
-
Rather than giving advice, I see therapy as a collaborative process.
I'll ask questions, offer reflections, share observations, and sometimes gently challenge patterns that may no longer be serving you. Together we'll explore possibilities so that the choices you make feel aligned with your own values rather than someone else's expectations.
-
I don't believe therapy is about fixing people.
I don't believe people are fundamentally broken.
Most of us have developed remarkable ways of adapting to life's challenges. Sometimes those adaptations continue serving us, and sometimes they've outlived their usefulness.
Therapy is an opportunity to understand those patterns with compassion and to discover new ways of relating to yourself and the world.
-
There isn't one answer that fits everyone.
Some people come for support through a particular life transition. Others choose longer-term therapy as part of an ongoing commitment to personal growth.
Healing isn't a destination we arrive at once and for all. It unfolds over time, often in ways that surprise us. We'll regularly check in together to make sure therapy continues to meet your needs.
-
Our first session is an opportunity to begin building a relationship.
We'll talk about what brings you to therapy, what's happening in your life right now, and what you're hoping for. I'll also answer any questions you have about how I work.
There is no pressure to tell your entire story in one meeting. We begin at a pace that feels comfortable for you.
-
Yes, if dreams are meaningful to you.
I see dreams as one of many ways our inner lives communicate with us. Rather than interpreting them according to a fixed system, we'll approach each Dream with curiosity, allowing its meaning to emerge through our exploration together.
Dreamwork is always optional and guided by your interest.
Get in touch
I'd love to hear from you.
Taking the first step toward therapy can feel vulnerable. Whether you know exactly what you're looking for or you're simply wondering if we'd be a good fit, you're welcome to reach out.
I offer a complimentary 15-minute consultation so we can briefly connect, answer any questions you may have, and decide together whether working together feels like the right next step.
Phone
Please leave a confidential voicemail, and I'll return your call within 24 to 36 hours.
Finally,
Whatever has brought you here, you don't have to have everything figured out before reaching out.
Therapy isn't about having the right words or knowing exactly where to begin.
It's about making space for your experience with honesty, curiosity, and compassion.
If this way of working resonates with you, I'd be honored to walk alongside you.