If you are struggling with trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, family conflict, relationship difficulties, low self-esteem, or a major life transition, therapy can provide a supportive place to understand what you are experiencing and begin moving forward.

My name is Brenda Galvan, and I am a bilingual Associate Clinical Social Worker providing therapy under clinical supervision. I am a first-generation Mexican American Latina who was born in Los Angeles and raised in California’s Central Valley.

As your therapist, my purpose is to create a safe, welcoming, and culturally responsive space where you can speak openly about your experiences. Together, we can explore the thoughts, emotions, relationships, and patterns affecting your well-being while developing practical tools that support healing and meaningful change.

I believe every person has strengths that can sometimes be difficult to recognize during overwhelming or painful moments. My goal is to help you reconnect with those strengths, better understand yourself, and feel empowered to work toward your fullest potential.

My Background and Experience

My interest in social work grew from my desire to help others and have the opportunity to make a meaningful difference in someone’s life.

I earned my bachelor’s degree in social work from California State University, Fresno and my master’s degree in social work from California State University, Los Angeles. I also completed a Pupil Personnel Services Credential at the University of California, Los Angeles.

I have 10 years of experience in the social-work field, supporting culturally diverse communities through nonprofit community-based organizations, schools, medical social work, and case management.

Throughout my career, I have worked with clients across a wide range of ages, beginning with children as young as five and continuing through adulthood. Much of my experience has focused on supporting adolescents and young adults as they navigate emotional, behavioral, relational, academic, and life-transition concerns.

As a bilingual, first-generation Latina therapist, I recognize that mental health is often connected to culture, family expectations, generational experiences, identity, language, and community. Therapy provides a space where these important parts of your story can be understood and respected.

My Approach to Therapy

My therapeutic approach is strength-based, client-centered, trauma-informed, and collaborative. I personalize therapy around each client’s experiences, needs, culture, strengths, and goals.

My work incorporates:

• Terapia cognitivo-conductual (TCC)
• Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
• Entrevista motivacional
• Psychodynamic Therapy
• Trauma-Informed Therapy
• Strength-Based Therapy
• Client-Centered Therapy

My style is supportive, compassionate, practical, and empowering. I will meet you where you are while also helping you explore the patterns that may be preventing you from feeling more confident, connected, and in control of your life.

I work with clients experiencing concerns such as:

• Trauma and distressing past experiences
• Anxiety and excessive worry
• Depression and low motivation
• Grief and bereavement
• Low self-esteem and low self-worth
• Behavioral concerns
• Family conflict
• Relationship difficulties
• Emotional triggers
• Safety concerns
• Stress connected to incarceration or family-system involvement
• School or academic stress
• Difficulty adjusting to change
• Major life transitions
• Challenges with motivation
• Feeling overwhelmed, disconnected, or emotionally stuck

Together, we can identify what is affecting you, understand the patterns behind what you are experiencing, and develop healthier ways of thinking, coping, communicating, and responding.

Trauma-Informed Therapy

Trauma can affect the way you see yourself, connect with others, respond to stress, and experience safety in your everyday life. You may notice anxiety, sadness, emotional triggers, difficulty trusting others, relationship patterns, or negative beliefs about yourself.

Sometimes trauma responses can appear as irritability, avoidance, difficulty concentrating, shutting down emotionally, feeling constantly on guard, or reacting strongly to situations that remind you of an earlier experience.

Trauma-informed therapy recognizes that many of these responses began as ways of coping with or surviving difficult circumstances. Rather than asking what is wrong with you, we work to understand what happened, how it has affected you, and what you need now to feel safer and more supported.

Trauma therapy may be helpful for individuals experiencing:

• Childhood trauma
• Family or relationship trauma
• Distressing memories
• Emotional neglect
• Grief or significant loss
• Anxiety or depression connected to past experiences
• Difficulty trusting others
• Emotional triggers
• Persistent feelings of guilt or shame
• Difficulty establishing boundaries
• Patterns that continue to affect relationships
• Feeling stuck in survival mode

You will not be pressured to share every detail of a difficult experience before you feel ready. We will move at a pace that respects your emotional safety, needs, and goals.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, or CBT, can help you recognize the connection between your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.

When you experience anxiety, depression, trauma, or low self-esteem, certain thoughts may become automatic. You may find yourself expecting the worst, blaming yourself, questioning your worth, or believing that change is impossible.

Through CBT, we can work together to:

• Identify unhelpful or inaccurate thought patterns
• Understand how thoughts affect emotions and behaviors
• Develop healthier coping strategies
• Practice more balanced ways of thinking
• Improve emotional regulation
• Strengthen problem-solving skills
• Build greater confidence and self-awareness

CBT is practical and goal-oriented, allowing you to develop tools that can be used outside of therapy in your everyday life.

Solution-Focused Therapy and Motivational Interviewing

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy emphasizes your strengths, resources, and ability to create change. Instead of focusing only on what is going wrong, we also explore what is already helping, what you want your life to look like, and which realistic steps may help you move closer to your goals.

Entrevista motivacional can be especially helpful when part of you wants something to change but another part feels uncertain, afraid, or unprepared. This collaborative approach helps you explore your own reasons for change without pressure or judgment.

Together, these approaches can help you:

• Clarify what you want to change
• Recognize your existing strengths
• Work through uncertainty or self-doubt
• Identify realistic and achievable goals
• Strengthen motivation
• Build confidence in your ability to move forward

You do not have to have everything figured out before beginning therapy. We can start by exploring where you are and what feels most important to you.

Psychodynamic Therapy

Psychodynamic therapy helps us explore how earlier experiences, family relationships, and unconscious emotional patterns may be influencing your present life.

You may recognize that you continue repeating certain relationship patterns or emotional responses without fully understanding why. You may also notice that experiences from childhood or adolescence continue affecting how you view yourself, communicate, establish boundaries, or respond to conflict.

Developing insight into these patterns can help you better understand yourself and make more intentional choices moving forward.

Psychodynamic therapy can provide space to explore:

• Family-of-origin experiences
• Childhood and adolescent relationships
• Attachment patterns
• Recurring relationship difficulties
• Internal conflicts
• Identity and self-worth
• Emotional defenses
• Patterns connected to unresolved experiences

The goal is not to remain focused on the past. It is to understand how the past may be affecting the present so you can begin creating a different future.

Therapy for Adolescents and Young Adults

Adolescence and young adulthood can bring significant emotional, social, academic, and family-related changes. Young people may experience pressure to succeed while also navigating identity, relationships, independence, family expectations, and uncertainty about the future.

Therapy may help adolescents and young adults experiencing:

• Anxiety or depression
• School-related stress
• Behavioral concerns
• Low self-esteem
• Family conflict
• Relationship difficulties
• Grief or loss
• Trauma
• Difficulty managing emotions
• Problems with motivation
• Major transitions
• Questions about identity or the future

My experience in schools, community organizations, medical settings, and case management allows me to understand that young people are often affected by multiple systems—not only what happens within the therapy room.

I work to create a supportive environment where adolescents and young adults feel respected, heard, and involved in their own healing process.

Is Therapy Right for You?

You do not have to wait until you are in crisis to seek support. Therapy can also be a place to better understand yourself, strengthen coping skills, improve relationships, or receive support during an important transition.

Therapy may be helpful if you:

• Feel overwhelmed by anxiety, sadness, or stress
• Are struggling to move forward after a painful experience
• Notice the same conflicts or patterns repeating
• Are grieving a loss or major change
• Have difficulty managing your emotions
• Feel disconnected from yourself or others
• Want to improve your relationships or boundaries
• Need support navigating school, family, or life changes
• Want to understand how your past affects your present
• Are ready to work toward meaningful change

You do not need to know which therapeutic approach you need before beginning. Together, we can explore what you are experiencing and determine which approaches may best support your goals.

Start Therapy with Brenda at Paloma Therapy

You do not have to navigate everything on your own. Whether you are experiencing trauma, anxiety, depression, grief, family conflict, relationship difficulties, low self-esteem, behavioral concerns, or a major life transition, therapy can provide a supportive place to begin.

Brenda provides bilingual therapy in English and Spanish and offers culturally responsive, trauma-informed care under clinical supervision.

Paloma Therapy provides mental health and psychotherapy services with options for in-person and virtual care depending on clinician availability.

Book a consultation with Paloma Therapy to learn more about working with Brenda and determine whether her therapeutic approach is a good fit for your needs.

Email: hello@palomatherapy.com

Paloma Therapy — Where Healing Begins.