Therapy for Parents in the Bay Area

Expert Parenting Therapy for Bay Area Families

Parenting is easily the hardest thing I have done in my life to date and I hear the same thing from every other parent I talk to.

I often think back to before I had my two kiddos and laugh at the girl who thought she would know how to do it. Afterall, I was a children's therapist and ran parenting groups at one point in my life. And while I had success - I truly had no idea how hard parenting actually is and how many layers there are. 

Have you ever tried to help your child regulate their emotions after a behavior that completely dysregulated yours? 

Trying to explain big life events to a toddler who doesn’t understand what divorce, death or moving means? 

Being on the receiving end of comments and eye rolls day after day from a pre-teen who thinks they know better, aren’t interested in your help and are downright disrespectful yet can’t figure out how to get their dirty clothes IN the hamper or keep track of their water bottle at school? 

Understanding Parenting Therapy

Parenting therapy offers dedicated support for parents facing challenges in raising their child. Whether you're struggling with behavioral problems, feeling overwhelmed by parenting responsibilities, or simply wanting to enhance your parenting skills, therapy provides a supportive environment to address these concerns.

As one of the experienced parenting therapists serving the Bay Area, I help parents:

  • Develop effective strategies for managing challenging behaviors

  • Improve parent-child interaction and communication

  • Navigate family transitions and changes

  • Address specific parenting concerns with evidence-based approaches

  • Build confidence in your parenting decisions

  • Create more harmonious family functioning

Parenting therapy isn't about teaching you to be a perfect parent—because there's no such thing.

Instead, it's about providing parents with tools, insights, and emotional support that enhance your natural parenting abilities and strengthen your relationship with your child.

Parenting goes far beyond just keeping them alive, it’s surviving each day, celebrating the big and small wins, trying to shape these creatures into responsible, competent adults that contribute to the world, can stand on their own two feet and possibly be parents themselves at some point. 

Add in any layer of neurodivergence with anyone in the house and things get that much more complicated. 

All parents struggle with the complexities of raising children and managing their own well-being.

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the challenges of parenting? You're not alone.

Many parents struggle with the complexities of raising children while maintaining their own well-being. As a specialized parenting therapist, former children's therapist, and mom of two serving Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, and the greater Bay Area, I provide personalized and quality therapy to help parents navigate their parenting journey with confidence and resilience. 

Comprehensive Family Therapy Services

Individual Therapy for Parents

Individual counseling sessions allow us to focus specifically on your experiences, challenges, and goals as a parent. Through these counseling sessions, we'll address:

  • Parental stress and anxiety

  • Work-life balance challenges

  • Self-doubt and parenting concerns

  • Strategies for managing difficult parenting moments

  • Self-care practices that support effective parenting in a healthy way

  • The invisible load of parenting

  • Relationship strains that parenting brings

  • Working towards being the parents we want to be

Many parents find that individual counseling gives them the space to process their own mental health issues and develop coping techniques before implementing changes with their child.

Family Therapy - Therapy for both parents

Family therapy examines how your family unit functions as a whole system. This approach can be particularly helpful for:

  • Improving communication between parents

  • Addressing conflicts within the family structure

  • Supporting relationship adjustments after having children

  • Creating a more nurturing environment for your child

  • Navigating major transitions such as:

    • Moving

    • Job changes

    • Divorce

    • Welcoming another child

    • Death of a loved one (including pets)

    • Raising differently abled children

    • Navigating the 504/IEP system

    • Other school adjustments

    • Any other adjustments that you feel “stuck” with

Through family therapy, parents gain a deeper understanding of each other's perspectives and develop healthier ways of relating.

Family counseling can be transformative for the whole family, especially when both parents are committed to the process.

Specialized Support for Specific Parenting Situations

Support for Single Parents

Single parents face unique challenges that require specialized therapeutic support. As a parenting counselor, I help single parents:

  • Develop strategies for managing the sole responsibility of parenting

  • Process the emotional toll that solo parenting takes

  • Create effective co-parenting relationships with former partners

  • Build a support network so you don't feel isolated

  • Balance self-care with parenting responsibilities

  • Navigate financial difficulties that often impact single-parent households

Time-pressed parents who are raising children alone benefit greatly from having a dedicated space to process their experiences and develop practical strategies for thriving in their role.

Specialized Support for Specific Parenting Situations

Maternal Mental Health Services

Women often face unique mental health challenges related to parenthood. I offer specialized therapy for parents at all stages:

Preconception and Family Planning

  • Processing anxiety about fertility and parenthood

  • Preparing emotionally for the parenting experience

  • Creating an achievable vision for family life aligned with your values

  • Support for those worried about conception, birth, and parenting differently than their own parents and processing the way they were parented

Pregnancy Support

  • Managing anxiety during pregnancy

  • Processing emotions around changing identity

  • Preparing for the transition to parenthood

  • Navigating challenging pregnancies with emotional resilience

Postpartum Mental Health

  • Addressing postpartum depression and anxiety

  • Processing birth experiences, particularly for those who have experienced trauma

  • Navigating the significant identity shift into motherhood

  • Building confidence in your parenting decisions

Almost all parents struggle with the adjustment to parenthood, especially with the first child. The emotional toll is one thing but the long list of additional responsibilities, while usually anticipated, can throw even the best prepared parents a curveball. I encourage parents to seek counseling during this critical transition.

Pregnancy Loss and Infertility Support

The grief of pregnancy loss is often unacknowledged or even minimized. Yet it is something that most women carry close to their hearts for the rest of their lives. . I provide support for:

  • Spontaneous loss and miscarriage

  • Terminations for Medical Reasons (TFMR) 

  • Elective terminations 

  • Stillbirth experiences

  • Processing how difficult each of these situations are 

For those experiencing infertility, I offer support for:

  • Processing the emotional heartbreak

  • Managing relationship stress during treatment

  • Coping with the financial burdens of treatments like IUI and IVF

  • Navigating difficult decisions about family building

Birth Trauma and NICU Support

Traumatic birth experiences can have lasting impacts on mental health and our relationships. I provide specialized support for:

  • Processing traumatic deliveries

  • Addressing anxiety about future pregnancies

  • Navigating the emotional and logistical toll  of NICU stays

  • Healing from physical complications of birth

  • Rebuilding a sense of agency and trust in your body

  • Processing any trauma that may have occurred by medical professionals or support persons

Evidence-Based Therapeutic Approaches

As one of the dedicated mental health professionals serving Bay Area families, I utilize several evidence-based approaches:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT helps parents identify and change negative thought patterns that may be affecting their parenting approach. Through CBT techniques, parents learn to recognize unhelpful thinking that leads to destructive behavior and replace it with more balanced perspectives that support healthy parent-child interactions.

Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART)


ART is a gentle, eye-movement-based therapy that helps parents process and resolve distressing memories or emotions. This approach can reduce anxiety, improve emotional resilience, and support healthier reactions in parenting situations.

Mindfulness-Based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)


This combined approach helps parents stay grounded in the present moment while accepting the ups and downs of parenting. By building awareness and emotional flexibility, parents can respond more calmly to stress, stay connected to their values, and make thoughtful choices that strengthen family relationships.

Understanding Parenting Styles and Their Impact

When I worked exclusively with children, a phrase I was always repeating to parents was that each child needed different things and different parenting styles from their parents. Figuring out what aligns with your values and works best with your child to obtain the desired outcomes is where the magic of parenting really happens. 

Different parenting styles can significantly impact children's development and family dynamics. Through mental health counseling, we'll explore common parenting styles, discuss what tends to work and not work with your child, develop what I like to call “behavioral experiments” and track what works so you have a toolkit going forward. 

The first step is honest reflection about your own parenting styles - the most common ones are:

Authoritative Parenting

Authoritative parenting balances clear expectations with emotional warmth to foster children's healthy development and life skills. Most parents benefit from moving toward this balanced approach.

Authoritarian Parents

Authoritarian parents emphasize strict rules without sufficient emotional responsiveness, which can impact a child's self-confidence and social skills.

Permissive Parents

Permissive parents set few boundaries combined with high emotional warmth, which can create challenges with self-discipline and respect for authority.

By exploring your natural parenting styles, we can develop an intentional approach that helps parents understand where you are at and discuss your child's needs and come up with a plan while maintaining appropriate boundaries. 

TIP: Sometimes a really meaningful exercise is to reflect on how we were parented, what worked for you as a child and what didn’t with the hindsight that you have now.

Common Parenting Challenges Addressed in Therapy

Parents throughout the Bay Area face various challenges that can be effectively addressed through parenting therapy:

Behavioral Problems

Many parents seek therapy when facing difficulties with their child's behavior. Together, we'll:

  • Work to identify the underlying causes of behavioral challenges

  • Develop consistent and effective behavioral modification strategies

  • Implement positive reinforcement techniques

  • Create structure and routines that support appropriate behavior

  • Strengthen your parent-child relationship

Child psychologists and parenting therapists recognize that behavioral problems often signal underlying needs. Through therapy, I provide parents with valuable education about both the behavior,  root causes and practical solutions.

Support for Moms  with ADHD

ADHD in women often presents differently than in men and can significantly impact parenting. I provide specialized support for:

  • Understanding how ADHD affects your parenting experience

  • Developing strategies that work with your neurological differences

  • Building on your unique strengths as a parent with ADHD

  • Creating systems that support successful parenting

Virtual Therapy Options for Busy Bay Area Parents

As a therapist serving the Bay Area, I understand the demands on time-pressed parents. I offer virtual therapy options that provide:

  • Convenience for busy schedules

  • Elimination of travel time

  • Therapy from the comfort of your home

  • Consistent support even when childcare isn't available

  • The same quality care as in-person sessions

Virtual therapy makes mental health support accessible to parents throughout Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, and the entire Bay Area region.

Taking the First Step Toward Parenting Support

If you're experiencing parenting challenges or simply want to enhance your parenting approach, taking the first step toward support shows commitment to your family's well-being. Here's how to get started:

  1. Reach out: Contact me to schedule a consultation or schedule directly on our contact page

  2. Initial consultation: We'll discuss your specific parenting concerns and goals

  3. Personalized treatment plan: Together, we'll develop a plan tailored to your needs

  4. Begin your journey: Start implementing new strategies with ongoing support

Remember that seeking therapy is truly an act of courage and honesty. I’ve never met someone in the first session that felt confident and had life figured out. Parenting is hard and as soon as we feel like we have something figured out, our kids are challenging us with something new. . This is not failure, and I encourage parents to view therapy as an investment in becoming the best parent for each of their children and their varying needs.

Contact Bay Area Therapy for Wellness Today

Ready to enhance your parenting journey and feel more confident as challenges arise? Contact me today to learn more about how therapy for parents can support your family's well-being. As a dedicated mental health professional specializing in parenting support and a mom of two, I offer compassionate, personalized care to help you become the parent you can be.

Bay Area Therapy for Wellness provides individual therapy, family therapy, and specialized parenting support throughout the Bay Area. I utilize evidence-based approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness Therapy, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help parents create healthier, more connected family relationships.

Frequently Asked Questions About Birth Trauma Therapy

  • If your birth experience continues to cause significant distress, interferes with your daily functioning, or affects your relationship with your baby, professional help may be beneficial. Symptoms like flashbacks, nightmares, anxiety, or avoidance behaviors related to your birth are signs that therapy could help.

    • Struggling to complete tasks despite good intentions

    • Feeling constantly overwhelmed by daily responsibilities

    • Difficulty maintaining focus on necessary but unstimulating tasks

    • Chronic lateness or poor time management despite efforts to improve

    • Emotional reactivity that seems disproportionate to situations

  • The duration varies based on individual needs and trauma severity. Some women notice improvement after a few months of therapy, while others benefit from longer support. We'll work at your pace and regularly assess your progress.

  • Yes, I welcome babies in both in-person and online sessions. I understand the practical challenges new moms face and create a flexible, accommodating environment.

  • Research shows online therapy can be as effective as in-person therapy for trauma treatment. Many moms appreciate the convenience and comfort of addressing sensitive experiences from their own home.

  • Yes, therapy can be effective even years after a traumatic birth. It's never too late to address birth trauma and experience healing.

  • Birth trauma therapy specifically addresses the unique emotional impacts of traumatic childbirth experiences. As a specialist in maternal mental health, I have focused training in perinatal psychology, trauma and the specific challenges faced by moms.