Specializations

Anxiety and depression are among the most common mental health concerns and can affect adults, adolescents, and children. Although they can occur separately, many people experience symptoms of both. They can influence mood, relationships, sleep, physical health, work or school performance, and overall quality of life.

Anxiety

Anxiety does not look or feel the same for everyone. For some people, it appears as excessive worry, overthinking, fear, difficulty relaxing, or constantly anticipating what might go wrong. For others, anxiety may be experienced primarily in the body—even when they do not feel consciously worried.

Physical signs of anxiety may include:

  • Muscle tension or feeling physically on edge

  • Tightness in the chest

  • Rapid heartbeat or changes in breathing

  • Stomach discomfort or digestive symptoms

  • Headaches, dizziness, or feeling lightheaded

  • Restlessness or difficulty sitting still

  • Difficulty sleeping

  • Fatigue or feeling physically drained

  • A sense of uneasiness without knowing exactly why

Some people may also experience panic attacks, avoidance of certain places or situations, social discomfort, specific fears, or persistent anxiety that feels difficult to control.

At Crespo Mental Health, therapy is tailored to how each person experiences anxiety. Treatment may involve identifying triggers and patterns, understanding the connection between emotional and physical responses, increasing awareness of sensations in the body, and exploring the experiences, relationships, thoughts, or circumstances that may be contributing to anxiety.

Our therapists may incorporate cognitive, mindfulness-based, grounding, relaxation, and body-focused or somatic strategies to help clients regulate their nervous system, develop effective coping skills, and respond differently to anxiety.

Depression

Depression involves more than temporary sadness or going through a difficult period. It can affect a person’s emotions, thoughts, relationships, motivation, physical energy, and ability to manage everyday life.

Depression can look different from person to person. Some people experience persistent sadness or hopelessness, while others may feel emotionally numb, irritable, disconnected, exhausted, or simply unlike themselves.

Signs of depression may include:

  • Persistent sadness, emptiness, or hopelessness

  • Loss of interest or enjoyment in activities

  • Low motivation or energy

  • Changes in sleep or appetite

  • Difficulty concentrating or making decisions

  • Irritability or increased frustration

  • Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, or inadequacy

  • Withdrawing from family, friends, or activities

  • Difficulty keeping up with work, school, relationships, or everyday responsibilities

  • Physical aches, heaviness, or fatigue

  • Thoughts of death, self-harm, or suicide

At Crespo Mental Health, we work collaboratively with clients to understand not only the symptoms of depression, but also what may be happening beneath them. Therapy may explore emotional and relational patterns, life experiences, stressors, losses, beliefs about oneself, and behaviors that may contribute to feeling stuck or disconnected.

Treatment is individualized and may include developing healthier coping strategies, reconnecting with meaningful activities and relationships, addressing unhelpful patterns, improving emotional regulation, and building greater self-understanding and hope.

The way we see ourselves develops over time through relationships, family experiences, culture, school, friendships, expectations, successes, disappointments, and the messages we receive from others. These experiences can shape how confident we feel, how we relate to others, and what we believe we deserve.

Some people struggle with persistent self-doubt, harsh self-criticism, comparison, perfectionism, people-pleasing, or difficulty setting boundaries. Others may feel disconnected from who they are, uncertain about what they want, or overly dependent on achievement, appearance, relationships, or the approval of others to feel worthwhile.

At Crespo Mental Health, therapy can help clients better understand where these patterns developed and how they continue to affect relationships, decisions, confidence, and emotional well-being. We provide a supportive, nonjudgmental space to examine limiting beliefs, develop a more balanced and compassionate view of yourself, strengthen boundaries, and build a clearer sense of identity and self-worth.

Therapy is not only about addressing what feels wrong. It can also be a space for growth, reflection, and becoming more intentional about how you want to live, relate to others, and see yourself.

Our goal is to help clients develop greater confidence, self-understanding, and a stronger sense of who they are—without needing to measure their worth against someone else’s expectations.

Difficult or overwhelming experiences can continue to affect us long after they have passed. Trauma does not always result from one specific event. For some people, it develops through repeated experiences such as family instability, emotional neglect, unhealthy or harmful relationships, loss, betrayal, chronic stress, or growing up in an environment where they did not consistently feel safe, supported, or understood.

The effects can show up in many ways. You may find yourself easily overwhelmed, emotionally disconnected, constantly on guard, uncomfortable trusting others, avoiding certain situations, struggling in relationships, or reacting strongly without fully understanding why. Past experiences can also influence self-esteem, boundaries, emotional regulation, and the patterns we repeat in relationships.

At Crespo Mental Health, we recognize that difficult experiences affect each person differently. Therapy provides a supportive space to understand how past experiences may be influencing your emotions, relationships, behaviors, and sense of self in the present.

Our therapists may incorporate trauma-informed, cognitive, relational, mindfulness-based, grounding, and body-focused approaches based on each client’s individual needs and comfort level. Treatment is paced thoughtfully, with an emphasis on emotional safety, developing effective coping strategies, and helping clients feel more connected to themselves and their lives.

Our goal is not to define you by what has happened to you, but to help you understand its impact, strengthen your ability to cope, and develop healthier patterns moving forward.

Relationships are an important part of our emotional well-being, and when they become strained, the effects can be felt throughout many areas of life. Ongoing conflict, disconnection, communication difficulties, or unresolved hurt can contribute to stress, sadness, anxiety, frustration, and uncertainty.

Relationship challenges can take many forms, including repeated arguments, difficulty communicating effectively, struggles with trust or intimacy, difficulty setting or maintaining healthy boundaries, feeling emotionally disconnected, or finding yourselves stuck in the same patterns despite efforts to change.

At Crespo Mental Health, we work with individuals, couples, and families to better understand the patterns and dynamics that may be contributing to relationship difficulties. Therapy can provide a space to improve communication, strengthen emotional connection, rebuild trust, address unresolved hurt, develop healthier ways of managing conflict, and better understand each other’s needs and perspectives.

Our goal is to help clients create healthier patterns, stronger connections, and more fulfilling relationships.

Life can become overwhelming when the demands of work, relationships, family, caregiving, and personal responsibilities begin competing for our time and energy. Many adults find themselves feeling stretched too thin, emotionally depleted, burned out, or uncertain about what needs to change—even when things may appear fine from the outside.

Chronic stress can show up in many ways, including irritability, difficulty concentrating, trouble relaxing, loss of motivation, feeling disconnected, constantly thinking about responsibilities, or feeling as though there is never enough time or energy for yourself. Work pressures, career changes, parenting and caregiving responsibilities, relationship changes, relocation, financial stress, difficulty setting boundaries, or simply trying to balance multiple roles can take a toll over time.

Major life transitions can also bring questions about identity, priorities, relationships, and what we want the next stage of life to look like.

At Crespo Mental Health, therapy provides a space to step away from the demands of everyday life and better understand what may be contributing to feelings of stress, exhaustion, dissatisfaction, or disconnection. Together, we can explore patterns and expectations, clarify priorities, strengthen boundaries and communication, develop healthier ways of managing stress, and work through difficult decisions.

Our goal is not simply to help you manage more, but to help you create greater balance, feel more confident in your choices, and develop a healthier and more sustainable way of living.

 
 
 

Motherhood can bring tremendous meaning and connection, but it can also come with an emotional and mental load that is difficult to put into words. Many mothers spend so much time caring for children, managing a household, maintaining relationships, working, and attending to everyone else’s needs that their own well-being gradually moves to the bottom of the list.

You may love being a mother and still feel overwhelmed, exhausted, irritable, disconnected, guilty, or unsure of who you are outside of the roles you fill for others. Changes in relationships, career demands, pregnancy or postpartum adjustment, parenting stress, caregiving responsibilities, and the pressure to “do it all” can leave very little space for your own needs.

At Crespo Mental Health, therapy provides mothers with a space that is focused on them. We help women explore the expectations and patterns that may be contributing to stress, strengthen boundaries, navigate changes in identity and relationships, manage guilt and emotional overload, and reconnect with parts of themselves that may have been pushed aside.

There is no requirement to be struggling with motherhood to benefit from support. Sometimes the challenge is simply carrying too much for too long.

Our goal is to help mothers care for their own emotional well-being while creating a life that feels more balanced, connected, and sustainable.

I think this belongs on the site. It gives you something your other sections don’t currently capture: the experience of the mother as an individual, rather than only her role in managing her child’s difficulties.

Parenting can be deeply rewarding, but it can also become overwhelming when a child or adolescent is struggling emotionally, behaviorally, socially, or academically. Difficulties at home, school, or with peers may be influenced by stress, low self-esteem, learning differences, ADHD, family conflict, trauma, anxiety, depression, developmental changes, or difficulty understanding and expressing emotions and needs.

Adolescence can be an especially complex stage for both teens and parents. As young people develop a stronger sense of identity and independence, they are also navigating changing friendships, academic pressures, social media, peer influence, family expectations, and increasingly complex emotions. Even when teens appear distant, irritable, or resistant, they often still need connection, structure, understanding, and a safe place to work through what they are experiencing.

At Crespo Mental Health, we work with children, adolescents, parents, and families to understand what may be contributing to current challenges rather than focusing only on the behavior itself. Therapy may explore patterns and triggers, family dynamics, emotional needs, school and social experiences, relationships, and other stressors affecting the child or teen.

Treatment is tailored to each young person’s developmental level, individual needs, and the family’s goals. Therapy may focus on emotional regulation, impulse control, communication, coping and problem-solving skills, self-esteem, parent-child and sibling relationships, boundaries and consistency at home, and healthier ways of managing conflict and difficult emotions. We may also address school-related concerns such as attention, organization, procrastination, time management, academic stress, and executive functioning difficulties.

Parents are an important part of the process. We help parents better understand their child’s behavior and emotional needs while developing realistic strategies for communication, consistency, boundaries, and responding more effectively to difficult situations.

Because Crespo Mental Health is a virtual practice, individual therapy services for children generally begin at age 10. For younger children, working with parents may be an appropriate way to address behavioral concerns, strengthen the parent-child relationship, and develop strategies that can be used at home.

Our goal is to help children and adolescents feel understood and supported while helping parents and families develop greater confidence, healthier patterns, stronger relationships, and a more connected and manageable home environment.

Grief is a natural response to losing someone or something that holds meaning in our lives. While grief is often associated with the death of a loved one, people may also grieve the loss of a relationship, job, health, sense of identity, role, home, community, or other significant life change.

Grief can affect us emotionally, physically, cognitively, spiritually, and relationally. It may involve sadness, anger, guilt, numbness, confusion, changes in sleep or appetite, difficulty concentrating, or a sense of disconnection from others. There is no single “right” way to grieve, and the process does not follow a predictable timeline.

At Crespo Mental Health, we provide a supportive space for clients to process loss at their own pace. Therapy may focus on understanding and making room for difficult emotions, adjusting to changes in daily life and relationships, finding ways to stay connected to what has been lost, and developing coping strategies for moments when grief feels especially overwhelming.

Our goal is not to rush or “fix” the grieving process, but to help clients move through it with greater support, self-understanding, and compassion while gradually adapting to life after loss.

 
 
 

Adjusting to a new culture can bring opportunity and excitement, but it can also involve significant emotional, social, and family challenges. Immigration and cultural adjustment may require navigating a new language, school or work environment, social expectations, community, and way of life—all while maintaining important connections to one’s culture, values, traditions, and identity.

For children and adolescents, growing up between cultures can create unique challenges. Young people may adapt to the surrounding culture differently or more quickly than their parents, sometimes leading to differences in expectations around independence, relationships, school, friendships, communication, and family responsibilities. Children may also experience pressure to fit in with peers while trying to remain connected to their family’s cultural identity.

Parents may find themselves facing an equally difficult balance: raising children in a culture different from the one in which they were raised while deciding which traditions and values they want to preserve and how to navigate unfamiliar expectations. These differences can sometimes contribute to misunderstandings, conflict, or a sense of distance between parents and children.

Cultural adjustment can also affect identity, belonging, relationships, self-esteem, and emotional well-being. Some individuals may feel caught between cultures or struggle with the sense that they do not fully belong in either one.

At Crespo Mental Health, our bilingual and culturally responsive therapists understand that adapting to a new culture does not mean abandoning the culture you come from. We work with individuals and families to navigate cultural differences, strengthen communication and relationships, explore questions of identity and belonging, and find ways to honor important cultural values while adapting to life within a different environment.

Our goal is to help individuals and families feel more understood, connected, and confident as they navigate life across cultures.