The weight that doesn't have a name yet.
Existential Psychotherapy
Existential therapy draws on a long tradition of thinkers who asked what it means to be human, from philosophers like Kierkegaard and Heidegger to therapists such as Viktor Frankl, Rollo May, and Irvin Yalom. It deals with questions everyone runs into at some point: that life doesn’t last forever, that we’re free to make choices and responsible for them, that some parts of life we face alone, and what makes a life feel meaningful.
In my work, I draw on this tradition when what someone is struggling with comes back to those bigger questions: who they are, what they want their life to be about, and what matters to them now.
Who this helps
Those confronting “is this it” after achieving their goals: You got the promotion, the title, the milestone you worked toward. Instead of feeling fulfilled, you feel hollow or a little lost.
Anyone facing mortality or major loss: A serious diagnosis, getting older, losing a parent, or suddenly feeling how short life is. You need room to sit with it, not just get through it.
People in identity limbo after a major transition: Divorce, retirement, an empty house, menopause. The life you knew has changed, and you’re not sure who you are now.
Individuals carrying persistent dread they can’t explain: From the outside, you’re doing fine. Inside, you keep wondering what any of it means, with no clear reason why.
Clients questioning the life they built: You did everything “right,” by your own standards or someone else’s. Now you’re facing the gap between the life you have and the one that would feel true.
Here’s how we get there
We look at what’s underneath: “I’m anxious” or “I’m burned out” is often where it starts. We look at the bigger question underneath, like dread, emptiness, or feeling lost.
We face the big questions: Life ending, the freedom to choose, the parts of life we face alone, what makes it all mean something. Instead of staying busy to avoid them, we make room to sit with them.
We question what you were handed: Goals, roles, and ideas about success often come from family, culture, or ambition. We look at which ones were ever really yours.
We rebuild around what you value: You start shaping your life around what matters to you, not what you were expected to want, and you test it through real choices.
You live it: That clarity shows up in your everyday decisions, your relationships, and your work.
FAQs
-
Not exactly, though the two often overlap. Depression sometimes has a clear cause, and sometimes it doesn't, it's a flatness or heaviness that persists even when life looks fine on paper. Existential work doesn't skip the depression, but it also asks what's underneath it: whether it's rooted in a loss of meaning, purpose, or connection to who you actually are. We treat the symptom and the question at the same time.
-
That's one of the most common reasons people end up in this work. You don't need a crisis or a clear trigger to justify it. Existential dread often shows up exactly like that, no clear cause, just a persistent unease, and it's still worth taking seriously.
-
This comes up constantly, especially with people who've built successful lives by every visible measure. Achievement doesn't cancel out meaning, it's a different question entirely. We look at whether the life you built is actually yours, or one you were performing, and what would need to shift for it to feel true.
-
Only if and when it's relevant, and always at your pace. Mortality is one of the existential "givens" this work touches on, but it's rarely the starting point, and we don't go there before you're ready. More often, it shows up quietly, in questions about time, urgency, or what actually matters, long before it's named directly.
-
This isn't abstract theorizing; it's applied to your actual life: your choices, your relationships, the decisions you're avoiding. The questions are big, but the work stays grounded in what's happening for you right now.
Existential Therapy
Session Cost
Private Individual Therapy: $225/ 50-minute session
Couples Therapy: $250/ 50-minute session
In-person in Hermosa Beach or via telehealth anywhere in California.
EMDR
$275/ 50-minute session
In-person in Hermosa Beach or via telehealth anywhere in California.
Insurance: I am an out-of-network provider and do not bill insurance directly. I provide a monthly "superbill" that you can submit to your insurer for potential reimbursement. Check with your plan to verify your out-of-network mental health coverage.
Resources
