I want you to get comfortable expressing your most authentic self.
Somewhere along the way, many adults (especially minority groups like women and people of color) inhabit the mindset that their authentic self is bad —
— that their ideas are dumb, that they shouldn’t share their feelings, that their opinions and needs and desires aren’t worth mentioning, that they themselves are inherently wrong or weird.
What does this have to do with Sex & Relationship Therapy? Literally everything.
Your relationships with others will improve when your relationship with yourself improves. Once you get comfortable actually feeling your own feelings — and believing that your feelings are important — and then talking about your feelings — then you can start to express yourself authentically, and really start improving your relationships and quality of life.
You can learn to look inward for comfort and answers, repairing trust with yourself, which will help you interact with the external world from a place of safety and confidence.
Hi! I’m Sandy.
I utilize an integrative approach, combining a bunch of theoretical orientations (person-centered, emotionally-focused, psychodynamic, etc), through the lens of attachment theory, trauma-informed, systems, and a multicultural/social justice perspective.
I take a nonjudgmental, yet direct approach with my clients, compassionately asking challenging questions in a safe space, so that each session may bring a little bit of emotional movement.
LGBTQIA+, kink/BDSM, polyamorous: you are welcome here! I am sex-positive and anti-shame/stigma. If you’re a person, I wanna seeya.
I greatly value the time I get to spend with my clients, often taking away so many lessons from our sessions together. I feel so honored to witness them speak about their most vulnerable thoughts, feelings, and experiences.
Click Services to read more about my specialties and offerings.
Therapy With Me
What’s sex therapy? How is it different from regular therapy? How does it work?
Sex therapy is basically like “regular therapy” in the sense that I use all the same techniques, theories, and training as any other mental health psychotherapist, except that my specialty is working with sex and relationship-related issues. We meet for 50 minute sessions and discuss your concerns, and I ask questions to see if we can make some progress in discovering the underlying issues that contribute to your concerns. Collaborating with you, I will help us explore the context of your life to see what the contributing factors are that might be causing or worsening whatever you’re experiencing. There is often “homework” that I will assign, either for you to think about or to do during the week(s) between sessions.
Can we come in as a couple?
Yes, I see both individuals and couples! Each type of therapy is meaningful and helpful in its own way. If you aren’t sure whether you should pursue individual or couples therapy, I can help you decide in a consultation.
What if I/we don’t like it?
You are always welcome to change your mind, quit, and/or find a new therapist! My feelings will not be hurt. This is your journey, you are the expert on your life, and it is crucial to feel comfortable and safe with the therapist that you choose to trust with your most vulnerable discussions, so I would encourage you to make decisions that feel aligned for you.
What types of issues do you work with?
You can read this page for a list of sex/relationship-related concerns, but please know that I work with anything related to mental health! (Not just sex stuff.) Typically, if someone comes in with a sex/relationship concern, the topics we discuss in sessions will eventually evolve into more than just those. Sex is affected be mental health, life, society, history, everything. It’s not self-contained. So our sessions won’t be limited to that topic, if that makes sense!
What’s the wildest thing you’ve ever heard in a session?
This is the most frequent question I’m asked when someone finds out that I’m a sex therapist. They want the tea, and I totally get that. But, TRULY, I never have an answer because nothing is that “wild” or shocking to me. Maybe that’s because the internet is my second home and has exposed me to everything at this point, or maybe it’s because I believe that there’s really nothing “weird” about people’s sexual habits/preferences. It all makes sense in some context. If you think it’s weird or wild, lets explore it!
If you have any other questions, please feel free to reach out!
FAQs
M.A. in Clinical Psychology (Marriage & Family Therapy) from Pepperdine University
M.Ed. in Educational Psychology (Giftedness, Cognition, & Creativity) from Texas A&M University
Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist #141488
Specific training: Gottman Level 1, Cognitive Processing Therapy
2024 Board Member (Pre-Licensed Rep) for San Fernando Valley chapter of California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (SFV-CAMFT)
Supervised by Dr. Rossana Sida, LMFT #116114