Therapists for college students near San Diego, CA
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If you are looking for a knowledgeable, honest, and compassionate therapist who can help you change dysfunctional patterns in your life, please reach out to me. I specialize in working with children, adolescents, college students, and working professionals who struggle with anxiety, depression, OCD, and trauma-related symptoms. By using an empathic, direct, and science-based approach, I have been able to help countless clients navigate difficulties related to relationships, job stress, academic anxiety, identity development, perfectionism, and social anxiety among other issues.
College life is exciting—but it can also feel overwhelming. Between academics, relationships, family pressures, and figuring out who you are, it’s easy to feel stressed, anxious, or alone. Maybe you're struggling with a breakup, grieving someone you’ve lost, feeling disconnected from friends, or just totally burnt out. Maybe you’re questioning your path or feeling like no one really “gets” what you're going through. These moments can feel heavy—but you don’t have to carry them on your own. Reaching out for support isn’t a weakness—it’s a powerful step toward growth and clarity. I'm here to help you tap into your strengths, make sense of the challenges you're facing, and start building the kind of life and relationships that actually feel good and grounded. I specialize in working with college students, young adults, and teens—and I’m passionate about helping you navigate this messy, meaningful chapter of your life. In our work together, you’ll find a space where you can be honest, feel heard, and take real steps toward feeling more confident, connected, and at peace. Whether you’re dealing with anxiety, grief, academic stress, identity questions, or relationship struggles, I’m here to walk alongside you. If you’re ready for something to shift, I invite you to reach out. You’re not alone—and you don’t have to figure it all out by yourself.
Our agency strives to empower students on their quest to achieve balance between their academic studies and personal lives. Our strength based approach enables our clients to develop strategies that are healthy and serve as the foundation for effective life long coping skills. Our expertise in learning disabilities, autism, ADHD and educationally related anxiety, depression, and ethnically diverse learners supports our efforts to individualize treatment and assessment plans to meet the unique needs of our clients. We look forward to partnering with you on your educational journey!
Life isn’t a straight line. It’s hills and valleys – moments where you’re climbing, coasting, or just trying to catch your breath. We get it. We’ve been there too. And we believe no one should have to walk that terrain alone. Everybody deserves quality mental health and access to wellness. With warmth, humor, and zero judgment, we help you navigate your unique path with more clarity, confidence, and compassion.
Adjusting to college can be overwhelming. Even though this is a life event that is planned, it can still be a culture shock for many. Making new friends, adjusting to a different type of structure, and being away from family and loved ones for the first time can increase feelings of anxiety. You might find yourself over-analyzing your social interactions with your peers in a way that you didn't do with your childhood friends whom you've known for the majority of your life, or maybe you are having a hard time managing your class schedule and assignments when school came easy to you in the past. Whatever may be coming up for you, I am here to support you. We will work together to develop helpful coping skills to manage feelings of stress and anxiety, calm the negative self-talk that often comes with increased stress, and process your recent life transition in order to feel more at ease with the change. My approach is warm, casual, and strength-based. I use gentle and validating conversation to help improve your confidence, challenge your inner-critic when it tries to take over, and make you feel empowered to take your anxiety head-on. Finding a therapist and making the initial step to start therapy can be intimidating and overwhelming. I invite you to contact me for a free initial consultation so I can answer your questions, address any worries or concerns about therapy, and ensure my therapy style is what you are looking for.
Have you been feeling anxious, sad, overwhelmed or stressed out lately? Perhaps fears, perfectionism, procrastination or struggles adjusting to changes in your life or relationships are preventing you from achieving your goals? I have a passion for working with young adults thru their college and early career years who are in need of support. Together we will help you create a strong emotional foundation and build tools to manage life's challenges. We’ll explore your patterns, uncover triggers and create personalized tools to help you feel better, more grounded, confident and in control. Seeking support is a sign of strength! Sessions available via telehealth to anyone located in California.
I work collaboratively with people who often find me to be fun and funny, positive, caring and compassionate. As I tell clients when they express gratitude toward me for helping them, "I know some stuff. " I know some stuff about trauma and healing and how people overcome difficult pasts that affect them in the present. I know some stuff about relationships, how they go sidewise and how they get repaired. I know a lot about autism and how siblings of spectrum kids are affected and how the future can seem scary if you don't have a plan for yourself or your future. Depression, anxiety, stress, anger, procrastination, relational difficulty, trauma recovery... I know some stuff and I'm here to help you. Therapy shouldn't be scary and once we get started you'll feel well supported and see some changes that are you are looking for.
Are you experiencing a difficult time managing life these days? Do you feel overwhelmed and not even sure where to start to make positive changes? Everyone goes through challenges in life and there is no shame in admitting you could use some support. It takes courage to reach out for help, and I applaud you for taking that first step. I work with clients who are experiencing anxiety or depression, those who are having a difficult time balancing life demands, or difficulty dealing with distressing life events. I work collaboratively with clients to work on what they choose to work on. I employ strength-based practices to help improve mood and self-esteem, decrease anxiety, and help you move into a more well-balanced and happy life. You deserve a more peaceful, enjoyable life! I am currently meeting with clients both in-person and through telehealth. My office is in the village of La Jolla, which is easily accessible by public transportation. I offer a free 20 minute consultation call to make sure we're a good fit. Please reach out either by phone, email or through my website to schedule your free call and we'll chat about ways I can support you.
Everyday feels exactly the same. You want to know what it feels like to live your life in color again instead of living in a world of grey. You're ready to work through the pain and worry so you can pick yourself up, climb out of that hole, and actually get somewhere different--somewhere better that feels more authentic to you. The stress and worry have gotten to the point where it is too much and you know something has to change. It’s time for you to finally get what you need to thrive. I offer a strength-based, outside the box, creative approach to working through your issues that goes beyond regular talk therapy. For instance, have you been through some tough things in life but are not sure you can *talk* about it just yet? I offer Brainspotting where you don't have to say much at all if you don't want to, but can still find relief. Have a meme, an episode of your favorite show, movie, comic, anime, video game or a song that just speaks exactly to your experience? Want to do some therapy and include Animal Crossing? As a Geek Therapist, your worlds and passions can be brought into therapy to help you on your journey if that is a fit for you. Bring your authentic self to therapy--I'm here for it.
Chelsea Sterling is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC). She holds a Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the University of San Diego. Her clinical experiences include providing individual therapy, group therapy, crisis counseling and psychosocial assessments through work in short-term acute residential treatment (START) programs, outpatient mental health clinics and an alcohol treatment facility. She is a certified Domestic Violence Counselor. Chelsea has expertise in the following modalities: cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), motivational interviewing and eye movement desensitization reprocessing (EMDR).
We are a team of culturally affirming therapists who have come together through shared common values, life philosophies, and the need to create an alternative and creative approach to therapy. Our values and philosophies were born and defined from our work in the following settings: home-based and community-based treatment, community outreach, advocacy, mentorship, teaching at community college and university settings, public speaking, and traditional talk therapy. Our aim at Courage Over Comfort Counseling is to empower our clients to step outside of their comfort zone and into their true greatness, and this… takes courage.
There’s a lot happening in our world right now. If you’re finding yourself struggling with adjusting to life changes, experiencing low mood, or feeling challenged in a relationship, you don’t have to hold this alone. In therapy, I create a space where you can be your authentic self, in the safety of a therapeutic relationship where you feel heard, understood, and cared for. I have a warm therapeutic approach that is collaborative so we can work together towards the heart of what you are needing. I have an integrative, depth-focused approach, and specialized training in trauma, EMDR, depression, anxiety, perfectionism, and building self-compassion. It’s vulnerable to start therapy, but at times we all feel terrified, overwhelmed, or realize things aren’t working as well as they could. Allowing a therapist to join you on your journey can help turn these times of crisis into opportunities for growth and healing. Visit my website to schedule an initial consultation so we can talk about what's possible. I look forward to speaking with you.
Hi! I'm Hazel. As a queer, trans, and Latinx person, I've experienced my own challenges with finding a therapist who truly listened and understood me. This propelled me to start my journey to becoming a therapist over 10 years ago. Many of my clients are LGBTQIA+, Latinx/e/a/o, BIPOC, college students, academics, artists, and/or activists. They're trying to manage life transitions, identity exploration, family relationships, anxiety, depression, trauma, marginalization, stress, relationship issues, land so much more. It’s my hope that through our work, you will find new pathways of resilience, freedom, growth, pleasure, and balance.
Life can be many things—colorfully painful, beautifully complicated, and at times, completely overwhelming. And it doesn’t come with a how-to guide. We all experience complicated twists and unexpected turns that cause sadness, worry, anger, and destructive patterns with food, drugs, alcohol, and within our closest relationships. I help children, adults, families, and couples break free from unhealthy cycles, rewrite their life narratives, and make changes to create a life truly worth living. Our lives are too short to lose precious time to unhappiness, feeling hopeless, and being “stuck” in the same vicious cycles. Through therapy, I can help you create a richer, more meaningful and fulfilling life for yourself, your family, and your relationships.
I practice therapy as a genuine partnership—collaborative, compassionate, and grounded in evidence. If anxiety, low mood, exhaustion, relationship challenges, or life changes are weighing on you, we’ll co-create practical, values-aligned goals and build skills you can use right away. I practice therapy as a genuine partnership—collaborative, compassionate, and grounded in evidence. If anxiety, low mood, exhaustion, relationship challenges, or life changes are weighing on you, we’ll co-create practical, values-aligned goals and build skills you can use right away. I am trained in a variety of modalities including Problem Solving Treatment (PST), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), CBT, and Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) among others. I also have many years of experience providing clinical supervision to MSW students and Associate Clinical Social Workers working towards licensure. I strive to foster growth and healing through a deeper understanding of your history, relationships, thoughts, feelings, and actions. I believe in human’s innate ability to heal from difficult experiences. You can expect to get something out of every session when you work with me.
Hello! I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker offering full telehealth sessions for the state of California. My training has been focused on unburdening somatic symptoms and upsetting events through Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, connecting mind and body through yoga practices and mind meditation, and using evidenced based trauma treatments such as Somatic Experience Therapy and Internal Family Systems. I would love to connect with you and see how I can best support you during your time in college. This time can be full of so many emotions, events, thoughts, and questions. I am honored to be a witness and sit alongside you as you navigate all of this.
We at Affirming Therapy Center are offering TeleTherapy services (by phone or video sessions for individuals and by video sessions for relationship therapy). If you have circumstances where TeleTherapy is too limiting for your mental health care needs, we are also offering the option of in-person sessions, along with additional safety protocol and procedures in place. We understand that you may feel anxiety and stress from the uncertainty of your situation, or depression from isolation, and that you may be experiencing relationship challenges or struggling with being single in a time of social distancing. If you need additional support and are looking to start therapy, please reach out to us. We are here for you! Move from what’s now to what’s next. If you are like most people, there’s no magic moment when you find yourself saying, “I’m ready for therapy.” But there comes a time when you begin to get tired of living with things the way they are, and enough is enough. If this is where you find yourself now, you are ready for what’s next. Like any first step on a new path, the beginning of the therapeutic journey may feel unfamiliar. We know, because we have traveled this road to find the whole places in ourselves. If you are looking for more or longing for change, we can help you start the process and walk that path. Visiting the Affirming Therapy Center website indicates that you are seeking a more fulfilling and satisfying life. We can guide you as we move forward to your better place. Contact us now to get started!
Hi there! I'm a Licensed Clinical Social Worker based in San Diego, CA, and have been working as a social worker for a little over five years. I've worked with all ages, from elementary school students to adults, but I particularly enjoy working with college students and young professionals who are juggling life transitions, family and relationships, work/school, and the constantly changing world around us. I previously spent several years working at an university serving students from historically marginalized communities, including BIPOC, LGBTQIA+ and first-generation students. I integrate aspects of dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), somatic therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), narrative therapy, and cognitive processing therapy (CPT) into my work with clients. I tailor these techniques and skills to the individual needs and wishes of each client, since some approaches work better for some than others. I aim to create a warm, trauma-informed environment for each client where they can feel authentically themselves, without judgment. All feelings are welcome in session with me. I enjoy being able to collaborate with clients on working towards the goals they want to achieve, and building on the strengths and supports they have already. I offer free 15-minute consultations to see if we'd be a good fit - feel free to email me to schedule or if you have any additional questions!