Karina, a co-founder of Talk-a-While, is responsible for the direct clinical management and oversight of our services and programs provided to our families.  She received her Master of Arts degree in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University.  She was born and raised in East Los Angeles in a large and loving Mexican family, and graduated from Yale University with a Bachelor of Art’s degree in Psychology.  Her passion for working with young children, adolescents, and their families stems from her upbringing in an inner-city community and from her awareness as a young child of the positive impact early intervention services, strong mentorship, and mental health support can have for families.  Her treatment approach is rooted in mutual respect, collaboration, and understanding her patient and family’s respective ethnic and family cultural background.  She strongly believes in the importance of establishing a strong therapeutic alliance, using evidence-based practices, and a strength-based approach in treatment.  She is often described as a natural with young children, is approachable, and easily connects with children of all ages who have been diagnosed with special needs.   

Ashley is a Licensed Psychologist who received her PsyD and Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.  She attended the University of Minnesota where she received her Bachelor of Art's degree in Psychology and a Minor in Sociology.  She has extensive experience providing evidence-based therapy for families, children, teens, parents, and the elderly.   

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She has a wide-breadth of knowledge treating issues such as anxiety/depression, phase-of-life transitions, end-of-life, neurocognitive impairments and dementia, and substance abuse.  Her most recent work includes conducting psychological and psychoeducational assessments, and developing treatment plans to address various diagnosis including learning and behavioral issues, ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, mood and personality disorders, anxiety, ODD, PTSD, gender dysphoria and psychotic disorders.  She enjoys co-leading group work with parents, social skills groups for young children, and support groups for families during life-transition stages.

Yianni is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (AMFT) with a Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology from Santa Clara University. He has worked as a therapist in the school and non-profit clinic settings, and has years of experience volunteering with children, teens, and adults in churches, schools, and summer camps. Having been raised in both the USA and Greece, he has a deep appreciation for the impact culture has on our values, communication styles, and relational dynamics. With a previous career in science and engineering, he is also familiar with the demands of Silicon Valley tech life. Yianni uses psychodynamic, person-centered, and family systems approaches in his work, and with children makes use of play therapy, bibliotherapy, and social & emotional coaching. His style is warm, attentive, and nonjudgmental, with a knack for connecting with children and adults alike.

Amelia is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who received her Master's of Social Science Administration (MSW equivalent) from Case Western Reserve University in Ohio.  She also attended the University of Chicago where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Comparative Human Development.  Prior to Talk-a-While, Amelia worked with children, teens, caregivers, and families in their own homes to help solve problems related to chronic disease management, the parent-child relationship, depression, anxiety, problematic sexual behavior, oppositional defiance, school avoidance, substance use, and more.  She also has experience working with couples.  Amelia sees the therapeutic relationship as the cornerstone of good therapy.  She is passionate about evidence-based practices but is flexible and attentive to what works for specific individuals.  She believes that all individuals and families have strengths that can be utilized in treatment.  Likewise, she believes that being neurodivergent comes with both strengths and challenges, and that neither one cancels out the other.

Cassandra received her Master’s in Counseling Psychology from Santa Clara University and is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist supervised by Karina Tamayo. She has worked in a variety of settings including an elementary school, bereavement center, and private mental health practices as well as an Intensive Outpatient program. Cassandra’s therapeutic approach is eclectic, including various approaches such Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy (EMDR), Person-Centered Therapy and Psychodynamic Therapy. Cassandra molds therapeutic sessions for each unique client. She has a warm, accepting and likes a good joke. Cassandra works with a variety of clients with issue, such as depression, anxiety, grief, relationship challenges and self-esteem as well as generalized anxiety, transitions and more.

Gabriel is a San Jose native who received his B.A. in Psychology at San Jose State University and M.A in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis on Marriage and Family Therapy at the University of San Francisco. Early in his career, he worked as an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapist supporting children and adolescence diagnosed on the Autism Spectrum disorder (ASD). After graduate school, he immediately worked with populations with severe mental illness and criminal justice history within the capacity of Full Service Partnership and Intensive Outpatient Programs in Santa Clara County. His experience covers a wide variety of clientele throughout the lifespan including clinical topics such as: mood disorders, trauma, substance use, relational/couples work, parenting skills, psychosis, high risk behaviors, suicidality, and crisis intervention. Gabriel primarily utilizes a person-centered/humanistic approach along with an eclectic background of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)/Trauma-Focused-CBT/CBT for psychosis, Motivational Interviewing, Solution-Focused, and Gottman Method in creating a connection with his clients and families.

Ann received her Master's degree in Social Work from San Jose State University, and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.  Prior to her social work degree, she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from U.C. Santa Barbara.  She has over 30 years of clinical experience providing therapy to various age groups including children, adolescents, and adults. She has extensive experience working with adolescents and the challenges of their stage such as anxiety and stress, mood management, eating disorders, depression, peer relationships when transitioning from middle school to high school, and high school to college.  She enjoys working with parents through individual therapy and providing support group work for parents to better understand the family dynamics and external stressors that affect their children and teenagers.

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Danna was born and raised in the Los Angeles Area.  She attended Mount St Mary’s University in Los Angeles where she graduated with a M.S in Counseling Psychology and an Enlaces certification. ¡Enlaces! is a certificate program that is embedded into the Marriage & Family Therapy (MFT) program where clinicians are trained to apply and practice specific cultural frameworks and psychological terminology to support populations within the Spanish-speaking community.  Danna found her passion for behavioral work when she worked as an ABA interventionist, working in home and school-based settings with children diagnosed with ASD, ADHD, ODD and Conduct disorder.  Her clinical work has included supporting clients struggling with executive functioning, ADHD, anxiety, depression, interpersonal relationships and ASD.  She uses a combination of CBT and a person-centered approach when working with clients, meeting them where they are in the therapeutic process.  This creates a safe and trusting environment for work and progress to take place.

Zoila received her Master of Arts degree in Counseling Psychology from Santa Clara University, and is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.  Prior to her therapy education, she received her Master's degree in Education from U.C. Berkeley and worked as a teacher where she learned that many students were unable to be present and focus within classrooms because of environmental stressors, past trauma, undiagnosed socio-emotional issues or learning disorders.  She has extensive experience working with children, adolescents, and families within a school-based setting, and worked with families who have children with special needs.  She enjoys couples and co-parenting work to create constructive and healthy communications, and develop realistic goals and expectations.  She works from a strength-based model, highlighting positive skills that each individual family member brings, while encouraging the development of new skills for individual and family growth.  She uses various therapy modalities with children, such as play and bibliotherapy, to foster connections and allow for expression and growth.

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Maritza, a co-founder of Talk-a-While, oversees the day to day operations of our Center to ensure the implementation of our vision, including employee/client relations, billing, payroll and general operational reporting.  She is also responsible for the hiring and management of administrative staff, policy/process implementation, and will assist with clinical recruitment.  In addition, she engages in promoting and developing partnerships and business relations with local organizations to better serve our families.