Elsa Quintanilla LMFT

Hello and welcome. I’m glad you’re here, and I appreciate you taking the time to learn more about my practice. Reaching out for support is a meaningful step, and I strive to offer a therapeutic space that feels respectful, grounded, and deeply human.

I am a bilingual (English/Spanish) psychotherapist with over 20 years of experience providing psychotherapy to adults, children, adolescents, couples, and families. I was born and raised in California’s Central Valley, a region that deeply shaped my understanding of resilience, community, and the social and cultural factors that influence emotional wellbeing. Throughout my career, I have worked in a wide range of settings across California, including community mental health clinics, nonprofit agencies, and specialized treatment programs.

These experiences have allowed me to support clients with a broad range of concerns, including complex trauma, depression, anxiety, relationship challenges, domestic violence, identity exploration, life transitions, and the effects of chronic stress. I have extensive experience working with underserved populations and individuals who may feel unseen or misunderstood within traditional systems of care. I approach each client with curiosity, humility, and respect for their lived experience.

At the core of my work is a commitment to depth psychotherapy. I consider myself both a practitioner and a lifelong student of this approach, which honors the entirety of the person—emotionally, psychologically, physically, culturally, and spiritually. Depth psychotherapy moves beyond symptom reduction to explore meaning, patterns, unconscious processes, and the ways early experiences shape present-day relationships and inner life. I believe healing unfolds when we bring compassion and awareness to the parts of ourselves that developed in response to adversity.

My therapeutic style is relational, collaborative, and trauma-informed. I view therapy as a shared process where we work together to understand what has shaped you, what may be keeping you stuck, and what is seeking attention and care. I strive to create a safe, nonjudgmental environment where difficult emotions can be explored at a pace that feels manageable and respectful. Building trust and safety is central to meaningful therapeutic work.

I integrate a range of approaches depending on each client’s needs, including depth-oriented psychotherapy, psychodynamic and relational frameworks, expressive arts, and somatic awareness. My training in expressive arts therapy offers creative avenues for exploration when words alone feel limiting, allowing insight and healing to emerge in embodied and symbolic ways.

I have extensive training as a domestic violence and batterer intervention counselor through the Marjorie Mason Center. This work has deeply informed my understanding of power, control, attachment, and the long-term effects of interpersonal trauma. I approach this area of practice with care, accountability, and compassion, supporting clients in understanding relational patterns and fostering meaningful change.

I hold a bachelor’s degree in social work, a master’s degree in counseling psychology from the University of San Francisco, four years of doctoral training in depth psychotherapy through Pacifica Graduate Institute, and an expressive arts certificate from John F. Kennedy University. My education reflects a lifelong dedication to ethical practice, self-reflection, and continued learning.

I am currently accepting new patients and welcome individuals, couples, and families seeking deeper understanding, healing, and growth. Whether you are facing a specific challenge or sensing that something within needs attention, therapy can offer a supportive space to reconnect with yourself and move toward greater wholeness.

Elsa Quintanilla LMFT