Sara Contreras, LMFT
Therapist in California
Sara Contreras is a licensed marriage and family therapist in California with five years of clinical experience.
- Licensed inCalifornia
- License139564
- NPI 1740754993
- Experience5+ years
- LanguagesEnglish
Details are as listed on the therapist's public professional profile. You can check any license with the state board and any NPI with the national registry.
About Sara
Sara Contreras is a licensed marriage and family therapist in California with five years of clinical experience. She uses attachment-based ideas to help people understand how early bonds affect current relationships. Sara offers straightforward support for stress, anxiety, trauma, depression, and big life changes.
Sara keeps sessions direct and relational. She creates a calm space where clients can talk about hard feelings without judgment. Her client-centered stance means she follows each person’s pace and priorities.
Background and approach
Practical tools are introduced when they match a client's goals. She draws on cognitive behavioral techniques to help identify unhelpful thoughts and try new patterns of behavior. For trauma-related work, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) can be part of the approach when appropriate.
Mindfulness and existential ideas are used to link daily choices to deeper meaning. Sara has worked with people facing relationship strain, attachment wounds, abandonment fears, and intimacy-related concerns. She also supports those coping with grief, caregiver stress, chronic illness, and issues around body image or kink culture.
Her practice addresses both mood concerns like bipolar symptoms and attention-related challenges such as ADHD. Sessions are available by video, phone, live chat, or text messaging. Scheduling aims to fit around weeknight and morning needs, and Sara coordinates appointment times with each person.
Credentials
- LMFT (California)
- License 139564 · expires May 2027
- NPI
- 1740754993 · national provider identifier
Both are public records. A state board register will confirm a license and its standing, and the national registry will confirm an NPI. This directory copies what the therapist lists and checks neither.
Focus areas and approaches
Everything Sara lists on their public professional profile, in their own terms.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Trauma and abuse
- Depression
- Coping with life changes
- ADHD
- LGBT
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Compassion fatigue
- Abandonment
- Attachment issues
- BDSM, kink, and alternative sex culture
- Blended family issues
- Body image
- Caregiver issues and stress
- Chronic pain, illness, and disability
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD)
- Dissociation
- Divorce and separation
- Domestic violence
- Emptiness
- Family of origin issues
- Family problems
- Fatherhood issues
- First responder issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Men's issues
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Mood disorders
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Phobias
- Polyamory / non-monogamous relationships
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Sexual dysfunction
- Sexuality
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Somatization
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
Approaches Sara names
- Attachment-Based Therapy
- Client-Centered Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
- Existential Therapy
- Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Motivational Interviewing
- Narrative Therapy
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Somatic Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
Naming an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each therapist lists and does not check training records.
Online support
Bringing attachment-informed and practical therapy online
Sara combines Attachment-Based Therapy with Client-Centered and CBT ideas to guide online work. Attachment-based approaches look at how early relationship patterns shape current bonds and help people identify ways to feel more supported in close connections. Client-centered work emphasizes listening, reflecting, and following the client’s pace so sessions feel collaborative and respectful. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) focuses on spotting unhelpful thoughts and testing new behaviors to reduce symptoms like anxiety and low mood.Finding the right approach is part of the process and happens together. The therapist will discuss options, try what feels useful, and adjust methods based on goals and personal preference. This collaborative planning helps ensure techniques fit the client’s life and the problems they want to address.
Online formats include video calls, phone sessions, live chat, and text-based messaging, which make therapy more flexible. Video lets people work face to face from different locations. Phone sessions can be easier when bandwidth or camera use is limited. Live chat or text messaging can suit short check-ins, brief processing between sessions, or people who prefer writing. These options help fit therapy into busy schedules and different communication styles.
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Frequently asked
What kinds of concerns does this therapist help with?
Sara works with a wide range of issues including stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, depression, and coping with life changes. She also focuses on relationship and intimacy-related issues, grief, caregiver stress, body image, and ADHD.
How would you describe her therapy style?
Her work is attachment-informed and client-centered, with practical use of cognitive behavioral tools and occasional EMDR for trauma. Sessions tend to be direct, relational, and paced to each person.
What is her background and experience?
She is a licensed marriage and family therapist with five years of professional experience. Her practice has included work on trauma, mood concerns, relationship issues, and caregiving stress.
Where is she licensed and based?
She holds the California LMFT credential and provides services while licensed in California.
Which languages are offered for sessions?
Sessions are offered in English only and international clients are not accepted.
What session formats are available?
Sessions can be scheduled as video calls, phone sessions, live chat, or text-based messaging depending on what works best for the person.
How does payment and cost work?
Cost varies with location and therapist availability and sessions use a subscription model that can be canceled at any time.
How do I begin working with this therapist?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule sessions according to the therapist's availability.
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