WHO TENDS TO FIND THEIR WAY HERE
Curious, self-aware adults in their 30s and 40s who have done real work on themselves and hit a ceiling. People whose lives look good from the outside but feel flat or effortful from the inside. People who have had solid therapy before and want to go further.
Creative professionals, people in caregiving fields, people who have been responsible for managing their own wellbeing for a long time and are tired of it being so much work.
Often, childless adults with enough time and interiority to notice that something is off, who have been circling the same questions for long enough that they are finally ready to do something different.
How I Work
I am Kate DellaFera, a licensed clinical social worker in Pasadena. My background is in trauma, beginning with training on Skid Row and specialization in complex PTSD and dissociation. I bring that foundation to all my work, including with people for whom trauma is not the presenting story but tends to turn up anyway.
I use EMDR, Brainspotting, somatic therapy, Pain Reprocessing Therapy, and parts work, tailored to each person rather than applied as a program. I am direct without being clinical. I take what you bring seriously and I do not rush.
The free consultation is a low-pressure way to get a sense of how I work and whether it might be the right fit.
ABOUT ME
I received my Masters in Social Work from University of Southern California, and my Bachelor’s Degree in Individualized Study from New York University. I have a diverse background that informs my psychotherapy work, from my first career in the music industry, to a lifelong yoga practice. As a social worker, I am trained to consider all aspects of your experience, from your environment
My experience in social work and psychotherapy began on Skid Row where I worked with the unhoused community and began my training in trauma work. I then went on to continue my practice at Pasadena Trauma Therapy where I was extensively trained in working with CPTSD and dissociation. As a queer therapist, I deeply enjoy working with fellow queer individuals that have trauma backgrounds. I have supported folks through anxiety, depression, PTSD/CPTSD, life changes, attachment issues, boundary struggles, nervous system dysregulation, relationship and intimacy issues, and more.
I am a native New Yorker who is now happy to call Los Angeles home. In my spare time, I enjoy practicing yoga, cooking, and exploring the beautiful nature that California has to offer. I feel honored to do this work and witness my clients in moments of vulnerability and transformation. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you are curious about how we might work together.
ABOUT ME
EDUCATION
University of Southern California, MSW, Social Work
New York University, BA, Individualized Study (Music & Culture)
TRAINING
Trauma Resiliency Model Levels (TRM) - Trauma Resource Institute
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) - The Institute of Creative Mindfulness
Brainspotting (Phase 1) - Pacific Brainspotting
300 Hour Yoga Teacher & Meditation Training - Yogala Studios, Los Angeles
Therapy for when you have tried everything and you are still stuck
You are not new to taking care of yourself. The yoga, the acupuncture, the meditation app, maybe therapy once or twice. You are self-aware. You have done the reading.
And you are still here.
Why the other things helped but did not "fix" it
Insight is genuinely valuable. Understanding why you do the things you do matters. The problem is that understanding a pattern and shifting it are two different things, and a lot of approaches are built for the first one but not the second.
The patterns that cause the most trouble tend to live in the body and in the nervous system, not just in thought. They were learned in relationship, usually early, and they do not respond particularly well to being reasoned with. They need a different kind of attention.
This is where somatic and trauma-informed therapy becomes relevant. Not because it is better than what you have tried, but because it goes somewhere the other approaches do not always reach.
Katherine (Kate) DellaFera, LCSW
#123322
ADDRESS
402 S. Marengo Ave, Pasadena, CA 91101
PHONE NUMBER
(323) 524-8354
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What Deeper Work Actually Means
Deeper work is not more intense or more painful than what you have done. It is more specific. It goes to the place where the pattern actually lives, rather than working around it.
In practice, this means using approaches like EMDR, Brainspotting, and Internal Family Systems to work with the parts of you that developed these patterns, understand what they were protecting, and gently offer them something different.
It also means working with the body directly. Not doing exercises, not breathing techniques you already know. More like: pausing in the middle of a conversation to notice what is happening physically, and following that rather than the story about it.
For many people, this is the piece that finally moves something that has not moved in years.