Mental Health & Play Therapists Supporting Children, Teens, Adults, Couples, & Families in Pasadena and Surrounding Areas

Caring Therapists | Competitive Rates | Innovative Approaches | Telehealth Available

Mental Health Specialities:

  • Child Psychotherapy

  • Adolescent Psychotherapy

  • Family Psychotherapy

  • Adult Psychotherapy

  • Couples Therapy

  • Play Therapy

At the Center for Connection, we take great care in listening to your concerns and the reasons that sparked you to take the incredibly brave first step of reaching out for help. Whether that help is for yourself, your child, or your relationship, we know what enormous trust you are sharing with us when you walk through our doors.  It’s an honor to walk with you through this journey of change and healing.

The relationship between client and therapist is the foundation for treatment at the CFC. Research has shown that a strong relationship, or therapeutic alliance, is one of the best predictors of successful therapy.

Our team of empathic and caring psychotherapists is here for you. We come with various backgrounds and experiences, but we’re connected by the commitment to our therapeutic approach focused on safety, caring, and trust. The scientific lens that informs our work is “interpersonal neurobiology,” an exciting field of research and study about the neuroscience of change, and of healthy, connected relationships. We know that connected relationships matter and play a role in how our brains and lives change, so that’s where we start. 

SCHEDULE AN INITIAL CONSULTATION WITH OUR ASSESSMENT TEAM

Learn More About Our Mental Health Specialities

helping teens navigate young adulthood

Adolescence is an incredible time of neural development in your child’s brain. So much is going on beneath the surface, and while the clichés about teenagers are well known, the enormous gifts and opportunities of the teen years are far less touted. Our adolescent therapists provide a safe, non-judgmental space for your teen to learn about what’s going on in their brain during this time, and to begin to develop the tools to help them self-regulate and develop the resilience needed to successfully launch into young adulthood. Given how much change is happening in your teen’s brain well into their twenties, it’s a great time to be intentional about making changes that allow them to be successful in their lives.

To see our Adolescent Psychotherapists, click here. 

Adult Therapy: anxiety, depression, transitions, parenting consults, & more

While adults come into therapy for many reasons, ranging from anxiety to depression, relationship challenges, life transitions, parenting challenges, personal growth, grief, and more, the underlying goal is almost always about increasing insight and improving our capacity to handle hard things, even walking away from therapy with more confidence, clarity, and peace. This means if there is something in your life you would like to feel differently about or do differently, or an internal shift that has been elusive, perhaps working with your own individual therapist can help you connect with your own feeling of purpose, meaning, and satisfaction, and to reach your personal goals.

To see our Adult Psychotherapists, click here.

teletherapy

We're offering therapy and parenting support via phone and/or video. All new patients may indicate this preference on our Getting Started page. This option is available for individual therapy, couples therapy, and parenting support.

resources for families

Sometimes, families face changes or challenges, such as divorce or loss, or a rupture or breakdown in communication that indicates the family system is struggling and needs support and repair. At these times, the suffering can become a time of positive change and growth, and one of our Family Therapists can help you navigate the road to healing.

addressing children’s Mental Health 

We have specialists for every age and stage across the lifespan. Our child therapists often engage through play, creativity, and movement. Your involvement as a parent or caregiver is essential to the success of your child’s treatment. Your first step will be a comprehensive intake with your child’s therapist so that we can get to know your child’s strengths and areas for growth. We view parents as important experts on their children, and therefore as an essential member of the team, as we collaborate to create a plan to help relieve the distress, to build skills to help your child be more resilient, and to increase the joy and connection in your family.

To see our Child Psychotherapists, click here.  

couples therapy resources

Relationship challenges are common, and can even be a healthy part of growth. We are all aware of the high rate of divorce in the US., but what’s less commonly known and understood is how our attachment patterns, and our wiring, play out in our romantic relationships, What’s exciting is that we can change our past wiring, and our typical patterns, to communicate and understand in more productive ways, and build relationships that foster security and connection through intentional work and action. Our Couples Therapists can help you heal and find joy, intimacy, and safety, again by providing guidance and support for finding your way back to love.

PLAYTHERAPY

Because children are better at expressing emotions through their actions, the distinct advantage of play therapy is that children express their ideas and feelings through creativity and hands-on innovation. Research shows that our brains develop and get connected from the bottom up, so we begin with body movement and sensory experiences and allow children to make a natural progression to complex thinking, emotional awareness, and mature communication. In play therapy, children can share their life stories, form new connections and build confidence around previous challenges that have been difficult, uncomfortable, worrisome, confusing, or chaotic. A creatively attuned play therapist responds skillfully and effectively to clarify their needs, help them express their emotions, find new solutions, practice new skills, and rewire healthy brain connections in a way that feels most natural, comfortable, and yes, even fun and enjoyable to children!"

Reach out to our Mental Health Team 

Not sure of your goals, or the best path to get there? We can help you figure that out, too. Take a moment to fill out our intake form here, and a member of our Care Coordination team will follow-up with you to discuss where to begin.

Welcome to The Center for Connection.  We’re here for you.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about our Mental Health Team at the Center for Connection. Our offices are based in Pasadena, California, and is home to the best of the best in various mental health fields. Together, we are dedicated to improving the overall quality of care each person receives, while also significantly reducing the stress and anxiety on the individual and family.

Tweets from our Founder, Dr. Tina Payne Bryson, author of The Whole-Brain Child and other books.