Meet Sara

“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”

— audre lorde

Sara has a background in women and gender studies and journalism, and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in these disciplines from San Francisco State University in 2012. There, with the help of the Women and Gender Studies program and an internship at a domestic violence resource center, Sara began to embark on a journey towards social work. She learned how power and privilege shape the way in which institutions, society, and culture categorize and define people based on their gender, race, class, sexual orientation, age, and ability. In 2014, Sara earned her Master of Social Work degree from Loyola University Chicago, where she interned at two organizations focused on the empowerment of women.

Following Sara’s masters program, she worked with a housing subsidy nonprofit, working exclusively with chronically unhoused individuals who had a variety of co-occurring physical and mental health concerns. From 2018 through 2022, Sara worked in a less clinical setting with people who had experienced traumatic brain injuries and/or had been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. Sara worked as their advocate and aimed to ensure they had all the resources necessary to remain in their homes and out of nursing facilities.

Sara’s bread and butter is women's issues and her primary focus has been around trauma, specifically surrounding sexual assault and domestic violence. Sara is well-versed in intersectional feminist issues, along with issues related to sexuality and gender identity. Also, Sara is passionate about the use of art (however you define it) and companion animals in mental health treatment.

In August of 2020, Sara started her psychotherapy journey with BetterHelp, meeting weekly with clients who presented with a variety of issues including but not limited to: Anxiety/panic, depression/suicide ideation, sexual/physical/emotional/religious trauma, gender identity/sexuality concerns, and issues related to shame, vulnerability, and attachments. Within a year, Sara decided to strike out on her own and officially opened Unlock Counseling as a limited practice. Beginning July 2022, Unlock Counseling transitioned to a full time practice.

  • People are complex. But as a society, we compartmentalize them. We break them down to sex, gender, race, ability, etc. and tend to not consider the person as a whole, impacted by all of these things at once. As a clinician, Sara seeks to understand the individual as a system, someone who is impacted by their environment and who in turn, impacts it. Sara’s mission is to encourage others to empower themselves and develop the tools necessary to advance through struggle.

  • • Providing support and empathy.

    • Reducing stigma about participating in counseling.

    • Encouraging people to explore ideas and think outside the box.

    • Treating people with dignity, compassion, and understanding.

    • Working with a person where they are at.

    • Focusing on strengths of the individual and highlighting resilience.

    • Approaching an individual's needs based on an understanding of societal influences and pressures.

  • In order for a therapeutic alliance to be truly beneficial, Sara employs unconditional positive regard for clients and aims to create an empathic environment where clients are able to freely express themselves without fear of judgment, shaming, or blaming. Sara utilizes an empowerment and strengths-based perspective to inform her treatment and aims at collaborating with clients in a solutions-focused setting. Much of Sara's consideration of client issues is based on a feminist understanding of the ways in which institutions, systems, and structures impact and influence the mobility of people within society, culture, and nation. Sara comes to the client/therapist relationship with a deep understanding of the intersections of race, ethnicity, gender identity/presentation, socioeconomic status, ability, sexual orientation, and age.

  • Women's issues, including, but not limited to life cycle transitions, history of trauma, parenting concerns, family of origin issues, relationship building/maintenance, career satisfaction, and coping with grief/loss. Anxiety, attachment, addiction/substance use, ADHD/ADD, depression, domestic violence, PTSD/trauma, self-esteem/self-image, stress, sexual assault/abuse, and suicidal ideation/crisis management.

“But if these years have taught me anything it is this: you can never run away. Not ever. The only way out is in.”

— Junot Diaz