about us
Rae Amirian LCSW
LCSW #88573
Pronouns: they/them
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I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and received a Master of Social Work with a concentration in Mental Health from the University of Southern California. I work with children, teens, and adults struggling with depression, anxiety, substance use, trauma, and those wanting to further explore their sexual orientation and gender identity.
Prior to private practice, I worked in outpatient community mental health where I provided psychological evaluations and therapy for foster youth, most of whom came from immigrant families or were part of the LGBTQ+ community. The psychological evaluations included working with the CA court system, where it was my professional role to write detailed reports in order to communicate the needs of foster youth and their families to judges and attorneys and make sure they received the trauma informed care they needed. As a first generation Iranian American whose parents fled during the Iranian Revolution, I have a passion for helping other immigrant families rebuild a safer life. Therefore, I have obtained advanced training in order to conduct and provide immigration evaluations.
I am fully trained in Compassionate Inquiry, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), TF-CBT (Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), and SPARCS (Structured Psychotherapy for Adolescents Responding to Chronic Stress). I believe that in order to feel at ease and live authentically, we need to heal our wounds. Sometimes this can be scary and together we can unearth your full potential and help you move forward. I want to help you feel comfortable with yourself and the life you envision living. Through mindfulness and somatic therapy techniques, we can work together to bring awareness to your mind, body, and spirit. Together, we can change thought patterns that may be holding you back from feeling joy and continue the healing process.
Angela Shankman LCSW
LCSW #88574
Pronouns: she / they
Hi there, my name is Angela! I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Certified Compassionate Inquiry Practitioner. I received a Master of Social Work with a concentration in Mental Health from the University of Southern California. I received my Bachelors in Psychology and Spanish from Pepperdine University. Prior to private practice, I had the pleasure in working in a variety of settings: addiction treatment centers, programs for teens and adults on probation, group home and school settings, ranging from non profit to luxury mental health. In my private practice, I specialize in working with young adults and older teens who have experienced trauma and addiction. I am queer myself and love to work with clients with LGBTQIA+ identities. Many of my clients have traits of Highly Sensitive People, have people pleasing tendencies, and are looking to gain perspective and build more confidence in navigating their world. As someone who strongly values reducing harm and increasing compassion, I provide care from a LGBTQIA+ affirmative, anti-racist, social justice oriented lens. I am also vegan, extending my social justice interest beyond human rights into both animal welfare and environmental justice.
My therapeutic style is very relational; I see building a connection and trust as the foundation of any successful therapeutic work with my clients. To the degree that it is supportive of my clients’ processes, I bring my humanity into the room and do not hide behind a professional facade. I also approach therapy from a non-pathologizing lens, meaning I see your mental health symptoms as signs that something in your life needs attention and shifting. I relate mental health symptoms to a “check engine” light on a car - your symptoms are very wise signals from your mind and body but do not define your character any more than that light defines the car. With my use of both Compassionate Inquiry and Internal Family Systems approaches, we can examine your perceptions and how they were created, gain more clarity on your life experiences, connect you back to your body, find compromise between the different parts of you that may be in conflict, and explore how cultural and generational events have shaped you. I see you as the expert on your own story, and my sessions are completely led by what you see as important to explore. The flexibility to meet you where you are is very important to me so that I can support you in doing the work that is most beneficial to you in the present moment.