Diana Garcia

The majority of my clients come into counseling due to some form of anxiety or panic getting in the way of living the life they want. I will work with you to understand and learn about your anxiety, including what thoughts and behaviors make it worse. Ultimately, I will work with you to to be able to handle these painful experiences, so it stops getting in the way.

To be honest, being a therapist was the last thing I imagined I would end up doing when I was a child. I wanted to be a veterinarian; maybe there are some similar qualities. Either way, when I was an undergrad, I found myself gravitating towards psychology and felt so intrigued by everything I was learning. I was so intrigued because these were all new concepts for me. You see, going to therapy, talking about my feelings, or my fears weren't something that I learned in my Hispanic home. Because of that, I felt compelled to learn more and apply these concepts. And of course, that led me to do some of my personal work, which further motivated me to help others as they learn about themselves and strive towards the life they want.

That's completely normal and part of the process. I felt very similar the first time I went to therapy, especially since it was such a foreign concept based on my upbringing. Because of that, I believe it takes a boatload of courage to take the first step, so I commend you for starting to dip your toes in the water.

My style combines being compassionate and encouraging you to work through stuck areas to move you closer to the life you want. One of my main focuses is on making sure you feel heard and understood to figure out how to best tackle your concerns. I believe you're the expert in your life and expect you to take an active role in the process.

A typical session can look like a combination of learning a new skill or concept, following up on an assignment, and giving you ample time to bring up anything currently going on. It always depends on what's going on in your life. I make it a point to make sure that you get to decide the flow of the sessions.

I was fortunate to be exposed to ACT when I was still in graduate school by attending a training by Dr. Kelly Wilson, one of the founders of ACT. Since then, I've continued to consume books, online trainings and participated in another live training by Dr. Wilson to continue improving my skills with ACT. Currently, ACT is one of the primary modalities that I use in sessions with clients and personally in my life.