Life is a journey, grief is a process and humans are not designed to do it alone.
A Little About Us
Amanda Perez LCSW
The journey is never quite what we imagined it would be and settling into that reality gracefully is tricky. If we can learn to speak to ourselves in a compassionate and validating way we can learn so much about what we need and how best we can find contentment. Often through learned behaviors of past relationships or our own inner critic, we can be our own worst enemy. My approach is to model kind and compassionate language and offer authentic support so you can start to rewrite that inner dialogue. The bumps in the road will continue to come but together we can prepare for them. Then when they hit, you will be able to show yourself compassion and grace so you can grow from the setbacks instead of getting stuck.
I have been lucky to work with clients in all stages of life from children in San Diego’s Child Protective Services system to adults grappling with death and dying. In the early years of my career, I focused primarily on children until I recognized that the best gift I could ever give to a child was to help their parent heal. From that point forward, my focus has been working with adults and I feel honored every day to be part of others story. I look forward to learning yours.
Specialties include: Adjustment to Transition, Adjustment to illness, Issues related to Cancer, Domestic Violence, Trauma, Anxiety and Depression
Modalities include: Attachment Based Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Interpersonal Therapy, Emotional Focused Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy and mindfulness techniques
Education: Master of Social Work-San Diego State University Bachelor of Science-Major in Human Services-Minor in Women Studies-Lesley University
Andrea Vaz Antunes LCSW
From the moment of conception until you take your last breath, life will throw uncertainties your way. I am here and I am committed to walking you through this journey. Through life stressors, traumas, illnesses and anxieties, we will sit together and untangle the web, string by string, bringing you back to a healthy mind, body and soul. Therapy is not a cure but a toolbox of successful strategies to help us cope, make rational decisions, maintain healthy relationships, set and keep boundaries, and move on to live a healthy life.
I have worked with adults, children and families in a variety of settings, from residential treatment to Assertive Community Treatment, as well as medical social work. I have, metaphorically, held the hands of individuals during the toughest of life transitions while teaching them tools to cope with the overwhelming emotions of grief and trauma. I have come to find that people hold their emotions internally, which in turn, affects them physically. Our minds and bodies are interconnected, allowing each to affect the other, in most everything we do, say and think. Through Attachment and Trauma based techniques, Bioenergetic Analysis, EMDR and my personal therapy journey I continue to learn how we can use our time together to address both the mind and the body.
Specialties include: Trauma, Attachment, Anxiety, Depression, Domestic Violence, Addiction and Recovery, Adjustment to Child’s diagnosis, Adjustment to Illness/Injury
Modalities include: Somatic Relational (Bioenergetic Analysis), Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Grounding and Mindfulness, Emotional Freedom Technique, Polyvagal Techniques and Psycho-Education
Education: Master of Social Work-San Diego State University Bachelor of Art-Major in International Studies, Minor in International Migration, UC San Diego
