Oak Creek Intern bios

Seeking help is a huge first step – and in even looking for the right therapist, you have moved towards the hope that things can get better. I want to help you take this step, so you can find what is holding you back and help you live a life of more freedom and peace.I have extensive experience working with adults, couples, young adults, adolescents and children. As a counselor and therapist, I am skilled in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT essentially means we work on the negative thoughts and beliefs which are dragging you down. These thoughts can be the negative “broken record” in your head, which holds you back and stops you from achieving what you want in life. My style is caring, interactive and dynamic. I work from the San Francisco Office.

Is it hard to struggle with the same painful relationship patterns? Can you sometimes manage things but aren't really thriving? Are you tired of feeling alone? I'd like to help. I teach individuals, couples, and young children how to move beyond their stuck places through a 4-step process that leads them to the lives they want. I work out of the San Francisco office and I invite you to call today so we can discuss your situation. I look forward to hearing from you.

Eliot Schain received his MA in Counseling Psychology from John F. Kennedy University. He also received an MFA from Columbia University, a BA from UC Berkeley, and has been teaching adolescents in the public schools for seventeen years. He hopes to continue working with that age group (14-20) in order to help facilitate the transitions to adulthood, but he also enjoys working with couples and older adults. He is drawn to Object Relations theories, as a way to understand the scripts we keep replaying throughout our lives, but also uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in order to promote quicker change. His offices are in Berkeley and Pleasant Hill.

I specialize in healing trauma and working with survivors of childhood abuse and neglect. I have worked in conjuction with the Victims of Crime Program. I am trained in EMDR, a trauma-healing modality that utilizes right&left brain stimulation to facilitate re-processing and re-integration of the trauma experience, which regular "talk therapy" may not reach. While working with clients, I have often witnessed their psychological trauma functioning as a “sacred wound,” potentially offering a doorway to a deeper sense of meaning, self-integration and groundedness. I find that the challenge is to learn to listen to and honor our wounds, but not to overidentify with them.

My soul-based approach helps clients contact their deepest aspirations, and to recognize and appreciate their innermost reality that transcends the personality and all the challenges it encounters. My style is interactive and collaborative--engaging the client in a partnership-for-transformation. My work synthesizes influences from various sources: spiritual traditions (e.g. mindfulness practice, breathwork, and guided visualization), existential/humanistic psychology (navigating through uncertainty, dread and the unknown), change-facilitating cognitive-behavioral approaches, and psychodynamic (relational healing) approaches. I also believe that laughter is a most potent healer. I have a great sense of humor, and encourage clients to have fun, both inside and outside of the therapy room.

Specialty-Adolescences, Couples and Individuals. I received by Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology with a Specialization in Child and Adolescent Therapy, September 2006. Prior to pursuing my masters, I taught for over 15 years. I taught third through eighth grades. The students I taught had disruptive behaviors and had experienced trauma. My teaching involved: close communication with their parents (many who were recovering from drug and alcohol abuse), and/or guardians, counselors and teachers. During my MFT training, I acquired experience counseling twin adolescent females, couples, individuals with identity issues (including gender, sexual, biracial and bicultural) and eating disorders. As an intern my experience has continue to be with couples, identity issues and also children between the age of 8 years and 14 years. My client hours are Wednesdays and Thursdays in Pleasant Hill between 5pm and 9pm. Saturdays and Sundays in Berkeley between 1pm and 5pm. I am also starting a group for friends, family members, and parents of transgender youth. Call (888)637-7404 ext. 27

Practically speaking, a new kind of therapy is created for every client. Everyone has their own special something to look into and I see my job as aiding and assisting that work. Sometimes I focus on confidentiality, sometimes safety, trust, grief, being self critical, awareness, or whatever really is the most important thing for my client. My job is to maintain trust safety and an open dialog. With couples, individuals, in Spanish or English, I frequently offer small but practical tools for those who desire lasting growth or change. Extension 26.

I offer psychotherapy and counseling for a broad array of personal issues including depression, anxiety, relationship difficulties, and the general problems that we all experience with major and minor life transitions. I have had great success in helping my clients, mainly by fostering a supportive, understanding, yet challenging therapeutic environment. My job is to help you achieve symptom relief in the shortest amount of time possible, while also helping you develop insight into the many dynamics of your personal life. I believe that everyone is capable of change, and I am here to help you achieve it.

My areas of clinical experience include depression, grief, loss, fear, anger, anxiety, panic, trauma, Obsessive-Compulsive disorder, PTSD, eating disorders, self-esteem, aging, life-transitions, disability, relationship issues, identity, sexuality and gender issues, marital/partner discord/communication, parenting issues, overcoming your childhood, and domestic violence. My background includes a Masters degree in Counseling Psychology from John F. Kennedy University, and 25 plus years working in the field of physical therapy. I bring to my current psychotherapy practice a breadth of knowledge of injury, disability, and illness and their effects on the family system as well as one's emotional wellbeing. I have been dedicated to helping clients through the difficulties of their lives for over 25 years. To my psychotherapy practice, I bring years of experience, wisdom, compassion, and understanding of the varied issues life can present. I look forward to accompanying you on your journey toward personal growth and healing. I see individuals, couples, families and children in the Pleasant Hill Office. See the link to groups for my current groups. 1-888-637-7404, ext 28.

The way that I work is to teach you skills and give you tools to help you make the changes in your life that you feel need to be made. Together we look at the patterns and behaviors that get in the way of you being able to live in your full potential. This is how healing happens and subsequently real change. By healing what is underneath the patterns and behaviors you are released from negativity and can really start, and continue to, thrive in every aspect of your life. My specialties are anxiety, depression, and sexuality. I have great success working with individuals from all cultures, couples, and adolescents.I work in the Berkeley and San Francisco Offices.