Different Ways of Helping.

Therapy and Counseling for individuals

Individual therapy (sometimes called “psychotherapy” or “counseling”) is a process through which clients work one-on-one with a trained therapist—in a safe, caring, and confidential environment—to explore their feelings, beliefs, or behaviors, work through challenging or influential memories, heal from traumas, identify aspects of their lives and relationships that they would like to change, better understand themselves and others, set personal goals, and then work towards them.

Telehealth therapy is a method of offering individual therapy via HIPAA-compliant platforms virtually. For many, including those with mobility issues or people who are located in rural areas, this is far more accessible than traditional in-person therapy. However, clinicians are still bound to the laws of the state in which the client currently resides. At Axis Mundi, we are able to offer telehealth services to clients located in the State of California.

People seek therapy for a wide variety of reasons, from coping with major life challenges or childhood trauma, to dealing with depression or anxiety, to simply desiring personal growth and greater self-knowledge. A client and therapist may work together for as few as five or six sessions or as long as several years, depending on the client’s unique needs and personal goals for therapy.

How to start? Your first step is to contact us to schedule your initial appointment.  You'll be asked to provide some information over the phone to help evaluate if we're your best match (our highest priority).  You may then be scheduled for a free, initial 30 minute evaluation session which provides an opportunity for you to build rapport with the therapist and provide them with some background about yourself and the issues you're interested in working on.  This is the time to see if you feel comfortable with the therapist, and can envision yourself working together.  In addition, the therapist will be able to answer your questions regarding services, fees, confidentiality and what to expect in therapy.

Therapy and counseling for relationships, couples, and families

Relationship and family counseling is a process through which a couple (who may be engaged, dating, married, partnered—or sometimes even parent and child or other pairings) works with a trained therapist to identify specific areas of conflict and/or aspects of their relationship they would like to change, and then develops a plan of action to improve overall satisfaction and contentment. This is the same strategy applied to families, as well.

Working with a therapist in a safe and confidential setting, couples and families are able to explore how their individual backgrounds, beliefs, thoughts, and behaviors may be impacting their relationship in both positive and negative ways. Couples and families today often have multiple cultural and generational gaps and differences to navigate, and Axis Mundi clinicians are aware of how important this is to address. The therapist may assist the couple or family with addressing any immediate and pressing problems, as well as developing strategies for protecting and enhancing the long-term health and happiness of the relationship.

How to start? Your first step is to contact us to schedule your initial appointment.  You and your partner/partners/family members will be asked to provide some initial information over the telephone to help us evaluate a good match.  You'll then be scheduled for a free, 30 minute evaluation session which provides a chance for you to assess the fit between you and the therapist. In addition, the intake therapist will be able to answer your questions regarding services, fees, confidentiality and what to expect in therapy. We are interested in developing a collaborative relationship with you in which we try to decide together what kind of treatment would be best for you; if it's not us, we'll provide referrals to other clinicians we believe might be a good fit!

groups and therapy

Group therapy is a process through which a small group of people (generally six to ten) meet face-to-face with a trained group therapist to talk about a particular issue with which all of them is struggling—such as grief/bereavement, anger management, eating disorders, living with chronic depression or anxiety, recovering from childhood sexual abuse, or about an issue that they are all interested in exploring - like mindfulness, the Enneagram, and enhancing intimacy.

Under the direction of the group therapist, members share and explore their feelings and behaviors, hear different points of view and coping strategies, and receive encouragement from others facing similar issues. Group therapy provides participants a powerful opportunity to share and learn from others in a safe and supportive environment while working toward healing and change. Interested in joining one of our groups? Call us for more information!

retreats

Retreat programs are a little different. These are structured excursions that occur outside in beautiful natural environments like the Sierra Nevadas, or the Santa Cruz mountains. They usually last at least 4 days, and often include combinations of the therapeutic use of silence, meditation, yoga, kayaking, and swimming. They are led by therapists with years of outdoor experience, and who are also trained in the use of ecopsychology. The purpose is to regain a sense of connection to the natural world, and to reconnect to the sense of one's self while limiting the distractions of the plugged-in world.

They are usually group experiences, organized around a theme that has been determined important by all the members. Some examples include: Intention-Setting for New Times in Life, Creativity and Women, Relax/Unplug, and Mindful Disconnect.

If you're interested in a retreat, please contact our Executive Director, Lacy Martinez, who handles the details of retreat organizations, at 510.463.4123.