I’ve navigated infertility, donor conception, and pregnancy loss. I’ve lived through the joy and chaos of parenting young children, and felt how deeply that journey can lay bare childhood wounds.
I have reevaluated a marriage. I’ve co-parented after divorce. I’ve had to rebuild in midlife—and found that sometimes what looks like falling apart is actually the beginning of integration.
I carry threads of ancestral grief, climate despair, and spiritual longing. I’ve sought healing in places beyond talk: movement, song, psychedelics, energy work, ritual.
These aren’t just things I’ve lived through. They’re things I know how to walk with—because I’ve had to find the ground myself. Therapy for me isn’t about helping you adjust to a broken world: it’s about helping you hear the parts of you that never stopped telling the truth.
I know what it’s like to feel too much, to function well on the outside while unraveling internally, and to discover neurodivergence later in life—only to realize it had been shaping everything all along.
I believe deep healing happens when we speak the truths we were taught to swallow. I understand depression not as a symptom to eliminate, but as a signal from the soul.
HONORS YOUR COMPLEXITY
SUPPORT THAT
You don't have to tolerate the intolerable. You just have to remember what's true.
Whether you’re navigating depression, anxiety, parenting stress, developmental trauma, or identity shifts, our work can help you reconnect with your inner wisdom and access the safety and clarity needed for lasting change.
For clients seeking a different kind of access point—something beyond talk—I offer Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP). Used in a safe, structured, and relational context, KAP can soften the inner critic, quiet rigid thought patterns, and open the door to new perspectives. This is legally supported psychedelic therapy in Redwood City, California, delivered with care, collaboration, and deep respect for your unique process.
Psychedelic support, when it fits.
I work especially well with insightful adults who may be functioning well in their lives, people who can articulate what’s happening but still feel stuck inside. You might be the one everyone leans on, the one who knows how to seem “fine,” even when it’s far from the truth. This work meets you underneath the performance and overfunctioning, helping you move beyond coping into a more embodied, compassionate, and honest relationship with yourself.
For people who are used to holding it all together.
My clinical foundation began with structured, evidence-based approaches like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)—and that foundation still supports much of what I do. Over time, I was drawn toward modalities that make more space for complexity, emotion, and the wisdom of the body. Today, I integrate Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), parts work, somatic practices, mindfulness, and imaginal techniques to support change that’s not only science-backed but soul-centered.
Rooted in training. Evolved through experience.
My work blends evidence-based practices with deep relational care. Each step in my clinical journey has brought me closer to the heart of healing: helping clients reconnect with the deeper, often unseen layers of their experience.
Whole-person healing, grounded in science & soul
THE WAY IN
“I’m incredibly grateful for the support and guidance I’ve received from Dr. Kari. She has helped me become much more aware of the connection between my mind and body, which has brought me a lot of relief from anxiety and stress. Because of our work together, I feel more grounded and better equipped to handle the challenges that come up in daily life. I also deeply appreciate her calm presence and compassionate support—it makes it easy to open up and feel safe. I can’t recommend her enough.”
- Katie
Because of our work together, I feel more grounded and better equipped to handle the challenges that come up in daily life.
“Working with Dr. Kari has been transformative for my mental health. She excels at creating a safe space from day 1: she listens without judgement, provides genuine compassion, and gently guides me to look deep and find my own answers and insights. I feel more grounded, self-compassionate, and self-aware which helps me make better choices and build healthier relationships that are more in line with what I value. I can't overstate how much our work together has helped me grow.”
- Jackie
I can't overstate how much our work together has helped me grow.
“When I first started seeing Dr. Kari, a lifetime of ingrained self-criticism had me condemning myself for not being 'the best' at everything. Dr. Kari met me where I was, and has consistently shown me the power of self-compassion. She helps me understand and thoughtfully balance all the many parts of myself, and working with her has completely changed my attitude, reactions, and outlook—for the better.”
- MJ
Working with her has completely changed my attitude, reactions, and outlook — for the better.
“I have been working with Dr. Kari for several years and have been so glad to have a partner and guide through some difficult times and some fairly seismic life transitions. She finds the right way to both challenge and support me through transformative change in my life. Her approach has been flexible and dynamic, listening to what I need and truly want, and she is always compassion-led—reminding me often to give myself grace, patience, and support.”
—Kim
Her approach has been flexible and dynamic, listening to what I need and truly want
“I feel incredibly fortunate to be working with Dr. Kari. She's compassionate and accepting, and has helped me to look more closely at the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that are impacting my life. She truly ‘sees’ me as an individual and tailors her approach to treatment accordingly. I came to her feeling stuck—but with her gentle guidance, I've been able to make real progress toward achieving my therapeutic goals.”
Shelley
She truly ‘sees’ me as an individual and tailors her approach to treatment accordingly.
BUILT FOR REAL LIFE
SOUL-AWARE
SCIENCE-BASED
Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT)
Compassionate Mind Training (CMT)
Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP – Polaris Insight Training)
Mindfulness & Somatic Practices
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
ADVANCED TRAINING
Licensed Clinical Psychologist (CA PSY 22479)
Private Practice since 2009
Former Owner & Clinical Director, DBT Center of Marin
Psy.D. – PGSP-Stanford Psy.D. Consortium
MSc – London School of Economics
BA – UCLA
CREDENTIALS & EXPERIENCE
You know more than you think. I help you listen and find the way.
That all of their feelings are welcome—nothing too big, nothing too much. That their pain, their struggle, and just as importantly, their truth and their light are seen, welcomed, and celebrated.
WHAT I HOPE PEOPLE FEEL IN MY PRESENCE
I put my bare feet on the earth and send down what I don’t want, then ask for what I need: peace, strength, equanimity, power. I ground through breath, through my core, and through connection to the natural world.
Usually rest. Our culture rewards “doing” so much more than “being.” I appreciate my full and busy life. I have worked hard for it. It’s been just as hard to learn how to stop, to be, and to feel worthy—even if I do nothing all day.
how i come back to myself
Morning meditation still under the covers– “compassion under the duvet”—and a hug from my bigger-and-bigger kids when I can get it.
the small joy i can always count on
That the sensitivity and intensity I once saw as liabilities, or even symptoms, are actually superpowers—forged through trauma and grit—and usually read by the world as “too much.” The opposite of sensitive is insensitive. The opposite of intense is apathetic. I’m learning to bring both qualities forward in service of a world I want to live in.
what i'm learning (or unlearning)
WHAT GROUNDS ME
WHO I AM BEYOND THE THERAPY ROOM
Healing doesn’t only happen in therapy. These are some of the practices and spaces that have supported my own embodiment and integration, beyond talk.
Suz at Unwind Oakland combines legally prescribed ketamine with expert, trauma-informed body work for deep transformative work.
Mareesa has created a world where your story is everything. Her workshops offer space for meaning, connection, and the power to rewrite your own narrative.
Community is the other true container for healing. Leslie’s monthly Full Moon Circles are a near-magical refuge where women come together for depth, laughter, and restoration.
Connecting with nature is one of our most primal, animal needs. Reverend Connie Habash creates safe and sacred spaces to commune with the earth, and each other.
Peacebank is a Redwood City institution—and my refuge for mindful, embodied movement. From restorative to more challenging vinyasa, this is where I come back to myself.
5 Rhythms is the most joyful, full-feeling space I’ve found for moving my body. This growing community meets every Sunday morning in Redwood city to dance with freedom.
