Karina Larios

¡Hola! I am queer Chicana and proud social worker. My 10+ years of social work experience and clinical training at a Trauma Recovery Center (TRC) form the foundation of my practice as a therapist. At the TRC I worked alongside survivors of interpersonal violence, navigating the impact of trauma and rebuilding their sense of safety and self. I recognize the profound impact systemic, environmental, community, and familial factors can have on an individual's well-being, and it's a path I'm honored to explore and walk through with clients.

I approach therapy as a collaborative process rooted in dignity, compassion, and social justice. As a trauma-focused therapist, I work with adults navigating the lasting impact of trauma, anxiety, grief and loss, major life transitions, and identity development. I have a special interest in working with immigrants, communities of color, monolingual Spanish-speaking individuals, first-generation individuals, and LGBTQ+ individuals.

I take a compassionate, warm yet direct, and sometimes humorous approach to therapy, because sometimes it can help take the edge off stressful situations. I most enjoy helping clients explore or reconnect with their values and gently face the traumatic memories, emotions, or situations they've avoided in order to survive. We move at a steady, supported pace, building confidence to create real, lasting relief. I often utilized mindfulness, narrative, and experiential evidence based practices, coupled with concrete dialectical behavior therapy skills. I invite clients to arrive as their full selves, while we make room for the inevitable contradictions — strength and tenderness, doubt and faith, sorrow and humor, logic and intuition.