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Meet Our Team

We understand that some folks need more sensory input, and some need less. Since most public spaces are super overstimulating, we try to foster the gentlest sensory experience we can (and we have other sensory tools for our clients who need more sensory input).

Here’s what we’re constantly trying to improve in our space to help make your visit with us as supportive as possible:

• Lighting - we avoid use of overhead fluorescent lights wherever possible, opting for diffused, softer lighting instead of overhead lights as much as we can. All the lights in our waiting area are on dimmers that you are welcome to adjust anytime. Most of the lamps in our therapy rooms are on dimmers, and you can always ask your clinician to turn anything off, or to close the blinds. (Sometimes even natural light is way too bright.)

• Visual noise - we try to keep clutter and “loud” prints to a minimum, filling our space with plants and earthy materials we find more soothing. You won’t see tall bookcases full of books (as much as we love books, the varying sizes and colors along with the flurry of fonts can be more sensory information than is helpful while you’re processing important things with us)

• Sounds - our big rugs and multitude of plants help absorb noise; we have noise-cancelling headphones available to borrow; and we have signage reminding folks to keep conversations low and to avoid digital noises in the office

• Smells - we use unscented or non-synthetic cleaners and don’t allow any clinicians in our space to use scented candles or to use nebulized/ultrasonic essential oils; we use charcoal/HEPA/UV-C filters to help the air feel fresh (if scents are a positive thing for you, we have some gentle ways of adding scent in your session without going into the vents affecting other sessions)

• Tactile/movement - we have weighted blankets, pads, and pillows, and all sorts of fidgets for you to use. We invite you to wear whatever is comfortable, sit on the floor, curl up in your seat, and just be in your body however feels comfortable to you

• Spatial - our waiting room has several different seating options. There are multiple areas, letting you choose what you’d like to face and what to have your back against - it is as nervous-system-friendly as we can make a public space. If seats are closer than we prefer, we throw a tall plant between them. We aim for a non-threatening (and maybe even enjoyable!) waiting experience - by staggering seats to make sure it doesn’t feel like anyone is staring at you, and creating physical and visual barriers to sit behind. We even have two waiting room doors that allow us to control traffic so people aren’t walking right across you as they come and go

Executive function is our higher-level functioning that helps us strategize, prioritize, focus, manage our emotions, problem-solve, make decisions, and remember what we’re doing or saying right now.

In short, to us being executive-function-friendly means that we try to help you conserve your mental and emotional energy when you’re with us. You’re carrying enough mental and emotional load trying to keep all the plates spinning everywhere else in your life.

A quick way for us tank your executive function would be to stress you out, make it difficult to get in touch with us, difficult to find us, and leave you guessing as to what will happen when you get here.

But we think therapy feels better and goes better when you can find some rest in the process. Plus we’ve learned brains are most open to the change and growth you’ve been longing for when they feel safe and met where they are.

That’s why we aim to make your time with us feel like a sigh of relief from start to finish, not just with a soothing sensory environment, but in how we aim to make you feel welcome, seen, and heard. And in how we openly address how draining systemic oppression is. And in how we set up our scheduling and physical space to be easy to navigate.

It seems to us that receiving therapy and support, of all things, should help teach your nervous system what it’s like not to have to fight against everything all the time, just to take care of routine needs.

While we can’t provide therapy in a cabin or field in a quiet wood away from all hustle and bustle (yet), we’ve chosen our space because it cuts down on stressors we’ve experienced in other commercial buildings:

• Parking - we’ve got more than enough parking spaces and you won’t have to circle around competing for your spot or praying to the parking fairy

• Entrances - our building has several entrances, so it’s easy to enter on the same side of the building that you parked on

• Trees - our building and parking lot feel like a bit of a respite from the concrete and asphalt of other parts of Brentwood and strip malls when you pull in (and also as you sit in session feeling a bit like you’re up in a tree house)

• Easy to find - if you use the front entrance, it’s ultra easy: you come in the front door (under the pull-through/drop-off portico), the elevators are immediately in front of you as you walk in, and then when you arrive on the second floor, our glass doors are visible from the elevators, so you know you’ve found us before you even step out (it may look a little dark inside because we keep the lights low for a chill vibe, but you can’t mistake our planty jungle)