About Me

Hello!

I am Katie Mason (pronouns she/her), a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in California, dedicated to helping people transform their challenges into strengths. With over a decade of experience working in mental health with children, youth and adults, I utilize an eclectic mix of modalities for fostering personal growth and healing.

My Approach

My approach is built on the conviction that all humans are resilient and capable of achieving far more than they might initially realize. With uncertainty and suffering being inevitable, learning how to be regulated or settled in the midst of unwanted experience is a supreme skill. Part of human flourishing involves the capacity to face emotions in ourselves, others and the world around us with compassion, wisdom, and courage. It is not the presence of difficulties but what we do with it that determines the quality of our lives.

With a relational orientation at the heart of my practice (meaning, a way of experiencing oneself in relation to others), I create a compassionate and understanding space where you can explore your experiences and cultivate your strengths. My hope is that via therapy clients feel understood, accepted and ready to grow. I assist in awakening forgotten creative capacities or developing new ones. With an extensive background in children and family work, I support clients to understand the role their upbringing, early life experiences, and the greater socio-cultural context has played in their development. Equipped with this understanding, new patterns and pathways are forged to fit the current version of you. A version that includes more self-compassion, the cultivation of perspective taking and increased clarity.

My Background

My passion for working with people started at an early age, fostered by a family of teachers, therapists and doctors. I worked for years in youth development programs, including outdoor education, before obtaining my masters in social worker at UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare.

My journey as a therapist has included many different settings, always advocating for those living on the margin, under impossible circumstances. I worked for four years in San Mateo County at Children and Family Services, witnessing the depths of trauma, desperation and an over-burdened social system. Later I transitioned to more clinical work and was a mental health consultant to children, parents and multidisciplinary providers in the pediatric clinic at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital. Enjoying working more in-depth with clients, I took a position as a full-time therapist at an out-patient mental health clinic for children and adolescents in San Leandro, CA. There, I served teenagers experiencing burdensome family conflict, struggling with eating disorders and thoughts of suicide.

Then, in 2021, I launched my private practice in therapy where I get to share my gifts and connect deeply with individuals. I feel grateful for my experience and training, which has taught me the value of deep listening as a way to cultivate empathy. I continue to be a life longer learner and am always excited to incorporate new things into my practice. And remaining at the heart of my practice is the understanding how environment shapes individuals and all people are inter-connected.

My Trainings & Modalities

  • Strength-Based & Solution-Focused Therapy

  • Motivational Interviewing

  • Trauma-Informed Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT)

  • Family Systems Therapy

  • Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT)

  • Mindfulness Self-Compassion & DBT-informed

  • Family-Based Treatment for Eating Disorders (FBT)

  • Ketamine-Assisted Therapy (KAP)

  • Internal Family Systems (IFS)

Beyond the Office

I am someone who strives to live life by my values. I am not afraid of adventure or a challenge. I have lived internationally in several different countries and speak Spanish fluently. I am open-minded, non-defensive and have brave compassion for people from all walks of life.

I believe quality mental health services are a human right and work to advance those services as part of a social justice and anti-racist movement. Many of my clients are from marginalized groups, such as immigrants, BIPOC, Queer or Trans people, and individuals with disabilities. I am sensitive to those suffering from oppression due to their identity and work to support liberation in the context of psychotherapy. I bring a sense of curiosity, humility, profound respect and personalism to my work with individuals and families. As part of my practice, I offer sliding scale rates to make services more accessible.

In addition to being a therapist, I am the mother to two children and enjoy spending my time with loved ones and in nature. You can often find me running in the Berkeley or Oakland hills, camping in the Sierras, visiting beaches, traveling to new places, reading, gardening and spending time with loved ones.

I hope this sounds like a good fit. I would be honored to partner with you on your journey and look forward to connecting soon.