How did i get here and how do we work?
About Me…
Long before I became a therapist, I was studying presence.
My first career was as a professional performer. I earned degrees from the University of Michigan and Yale Universityand went on to perform internationally. I later studied improv at Upright Citizens Brigade.
Performance taught me much more than how to sing. It taught me that the best performing isn't pretending at all.
I spent years learning what happens to us when we're seen. What happens to the breath and body under pressure. How easily we can lose connection with ourselves when we become preoccupied with how we're being perceived. And the difference between performing at someone and actually being present with them.
Improv taught me to listen closely, respond to what is actually happening, stay available when I don't know what comes next, and not become so attached to the plan that I miss the person in front of me.
It turns out those are pretty useful skills for a therapist.
My path here wasn't particularly linear.
Between performing and psychotherapy, I've been a teacher, artist manager, entrepreneur, executive coach, facilitator and, yes, the owner of a custom baking company.
I've reinvented myself more than once.
I know something about the excitement and uncertainty of starting over, leaving identities that once fit, wondering what comes next, and discovering capacities you didn't know you had.
It taught me something I bring to my work every day:
Who we are isn't fixed.
I pay attention.
This may be the simplest way to explain what I actually do.
I listen closely. Not only to what you tell me, but to the words you repeat, the things you brush past, the moments your energy changes, the joke you make just as something becomes uncomfortable, and sometimes the thing you mentioned three months ago that suddenly matters now.
I may notice a lot.
That doesn't mean I assume I know what it means.
We get curious about that together.
Sometimes we'll slow something down. Sometimes I'll challenge you. Sometimes we'll notice what's happening in your body, experiment with saying something differently, rehearse a difficult conversation, or try something neither of us knows the outcome of yet.
There will also be humor. I take the work seriously. I don't believe that requires us to take ourselves seriously every minute we're doing it.
I understand both the inner world and the world you have to walk back into.
I'm a New York State Licensed Psychoanalyst and a graduate of Gestalt Associates for Psychotherapy. My work also incorporates EMDR, somatic and mindfulness practices, and I'm certified in Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP).
I'm also an executive coach, certified through the University of California, Berkeley Executive Coaching Institute. I've worked with leaders and organizations around the world, including Google, The Ford Foundation, S&P Global, ASML, Etsy, Booking.com and programs through UC Berkeley Executive Education.
That matters because our personal and professional lives don't divide themselves as neatly as our job titles suggest.
Anxiety can show up in a relationship and in a boardroom. Perfectionism can help make you successful and make it nearly impossible to feel successful. Imposter syndrome doesn't necessarily disappear because you've accumulated evidence that you're good at what you do. And the person who confidently leads a team may have enormous difficulty asking for what they need at home.
I bring a therapist's understanding of human behavior, a coach's orientation toward possibility and action, and a performer's lifelong training in presence, expression and connection.
Awareness creates choice.
I'm not interested in telling you who you should become.
I'm interested in helping you notice what is actually happening, without putting yourself on trial for what you find. We get curious about what's working, what's not, what's yours, what's not, and what you want.
Then we explore what to do next.
One of the principles I return to again and again is simple:
Replace frustration with curiosity.
Because my work isn't about helping you perform, prove, or perfect your way through life.
It's about helping you trust yourself, reclaim your voice, and create a life that feels meaningful, connected, and aligned with what matters most to you.
You’re in the right place…
How I work
Therapy with me is active, curious and collaborative.
You won't spend 50 minutes talking while I sit quietly and nod.
We'll talk, of course. But we'll also pay attention to what is happening while you talk. What happens in your body. Where your energy changes. What you avoid. What you assume. What you already know but aren't quite listening to.
Sometimes I'll ask a question. Sometimes I'll challenge you. We might slow something down, experiment with a different response, rehearse a conversation, use humor, or simply stay with something long enough to discover what is actually there.
My foundation is Gestalt therapy, but you don't need to know anything about Gestalt to work with me. At its heart is something very simple: paying attention to what is happening here and now.
Notice what is.
We can't change what is outside our awareness.
So we begin by noticing. Not just what's wrong, but what's working. The patterns you repeat. The stories you tell yourself. What you do automatically. What you avoid. What you reach for when you're uncomfortable.
Awareness doesn't mean something has to change.
Sometimes it means doing exactly what you were going to do, but knowing why you're doing it.
Get curious.
This is where Replace frustration with curiosity becomes a practice rather than a slogan.
Instead of immediately asking, “How do I stop doing this?” we might ask:
What is this doing for me?
What might it be protecting?
When did it become useful?
Is it still useful now?
We don't put you on trial for what we find.
Curiosity gives us somewhere to go.
Explore what happens next.
Insight is useful. Experience is where something new becomes possible.
That's why my work is experiential. We may work with the body, try something in the room, practice saying what you actually want, notice what happens when you don't rush to fill a silence, or experiment with responding differently.
Sometimes we use more structured approaches, including Attachment Focused EMDR, somatic practices, mindfulness or Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy (KAP) when they're appropriate.
The technique isn't the point.
What becomes possible for you is.
Choose intentionally.
Awareness creates choice.
The goal isn't to eliminate every uncomfortable feeling or replace every strategy you've ever developed. Many of those strategies helped you get exactly where you are.
Change can mean doing something differently.
It can also mean doing exactly what you were going to do, but choosing it rather than doing it automatically.
That's intentionality.
Ultimately, I want therapy to help you leave with more than insight into why you are the way you are.
I want you to have more freedom to ask:
What do I want?
What's actually mine here?
What am I choosing?
And then explore what you want to do next.
Curious what comes next? Let’s talk.
Click the button below to schedule a free consultation. We will discuss what your most pressing issues are right now and how I can help.
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Show up and Choose to be present
Pay Attention to What Has Heart and Meaning
Tell the Truth without Blame or Judgment
Be open to OUTCOME NOT ATTACHED TO Outcome
Angeles Arrien