Meet angela garbin, licensed psychologist
Therapy that’s warm, but not passive.
Maybe you’ve tried therapy in the past. You understand yourself pretty well. But you still feel stuck in the same patterns.
You may have spent years making connections between your past and present. You can often spot your patterns while they’re happening. And they still keep happening.
Insight matters, but it isn’t always enough. In our work together, we’ll look beyond the patterns themselves to the emotions, fears, and beliefs that keep them in place.
I’ve been seeing clients since 2009 and have had my own practice since 2015, first as a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) and now as a licensed psychologist. Over that time, I’ve learned that lasting change usually comes less from new insight and more from finally feeling what the insight has been protecting you from.
As a therapist, I’m equal parts compassionate and challenging.
You don't need to have everything figured out or worry about saying the right thing. I want you to feel comfortable just being yourself. I'll listen closely, ask questions, offer new perspectives, and sometimes challenge you to see things differently, especially the assumptions that sound like facts: “I’m being selfish,” “I should be further along by now,” “That’s just how I am.” Often the most useful moment in a session is when one of those gets examined instead of accepted.
The relationship we build matters to me. I want you to feel comfortable telling me what’s really going on, including the things you might feel embarrassed about, the feelings that don’t make sense, or the thoughts you’re not particularly proud of.
You don’t have to agree with me, and if something I say doesn’t resonate, I want you to tell me. I believe meaningful change happens when we’re both curious, honest, and genuinely engaged in the work.
My approach is primarily psychodynamic and relational, which means I’m interested in looking beyond what’s happening on the surface to the emotions and experiences underneath. Maybe you avoid conflict, need a lot of reassurance, or are much harder on yourself than you would ever be on someone else. Rather than just trying to change those behaviors, I want us to get curious about what’s behind them.
We’ll look at how your relationships, attachment experiences, and the ways you’ve learned to protect yourself have shaped who you are today. In our sessions, we’ll also pay attention to what happens in our conversations. Sometimes the patterns we’re trying to understand show up right there in the session, giving us a chance to do something different.
Psychodynamic therapy is the foundation of my work, but I’m not tied to one way of working. I also draw from more structured approaches like CBT, DBT, ACT, and mindfulness when they’re helpful. Sometimes we need to explore something that’s been with you for years. Other times, you need help managing anxiety, having a difficult conversation, or getting through a particularly hard week. I think good therapy makes room for all of it.
Education & Licensure
Ph.D., Clinical Psychology, Pacifica Graduate Institute, 2016
M.A., Clinical Psychology, Antioch University, 2010
California Licensed Psychologist, PSY32593
Selected Training
Postdoctoral training in addiction and recovery, Matrix Institute
Training in psychoanalytic psychotherapy, Valley Community Clinic
Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
Advanced Master Program on the Treatment of Trauma
I remain committed to learning and growing as a psychologist. I'm particularly interested in neuroscience and what it can teach us about how our experiences shape the way we think, feel, and relate to ourselves and others, as well as how those patterns can change over time. I genuinely enjoy questioning what I think I know and bringing that curiosity into my work with clients.
I know from my own therapy that it can change not just how we feel, but how we live.
Being a client taught me things no training could: how vulnerable it feels to say something out loud for the first time, and how much it matters who’s sitting across from you. It’s a big part of why I work the way I do, and why I try to be the kind of therapist I’d want to see.
Prefer to text? 646 831-0816