BROOKE POMERANTZ, LCSW | CALIFORNIA THERAPY & THERAPY IN OAKLAND
Stress Therapy in OaklandStressors in your day to day life can present themselves both physically and mentally such that tasks can feel impossible to accomplish and you can feel drained of energy. In therapy, we work on learning to cope with and decrease stress while tracing and addressing the root causes of your stress and suffering.
How I Help You Work with Stress (Work, Identity, Life Pressure)?
We start by identifying, elaborating and understanding the nature and root causes of your stressors. We also explore what coping skills and supports you have in place and identify where current, less adaptive strategies may be exacerbating your stress.
Together, we explore alternative, more adaptive ways of coping with stress and explore the narratives you hold around what’s happening.
We may also look at models from your caregivers as templates or blueprints for how you learned to respond to stress, and gently shift toward ways of creating more agency in your life rather than experiencing life as happening to you. We hold room for systemic issues and marginalized experiences that add additional weight and suffering to what you’re carrying.
How I Work with “Not Enough”
We’ll unpack what “not enough” specifically means for you and where those messages came from. Rather than trying to talk you out of your experience, we’ll examine family patterns, cultural inputs (including social media), and the functions those beliefs may serve. In the therapeutic relationship, you’ll have a consistent, corrective experience of being seen and accepted as you are – something you can begin to internalize.
Some of Examples Of How We Will Reduce Stress in Everyday Life
Examination of internal scripts and modification of negative self-talk
Cultivation of self-compassion and ways of being softer with yourself
Identification of movement that brings joy
Identification of your support system and discussion of ways to ask for help/get support
Exploration of opportunities for time in nature
Exploration of opportunities for play and/or creativity in your life
Exploration of ways to slow down and create more time and psychic space in your life
Exploration of ways of developing healthier relationships with external stressors such as news consumption or social media
Focus on sleep hygiene, nutrition improvement, and abstinence from substances abuse or a reduction in substance use
How I Help You Work with Stress
Therapy offers a safe, attuned, and supportive relationship where we can understand how your sense of value formed and what strengthens it now.
Identify the Root Causes of Stress
We start by identifying, elaborating and understanding the nature and root causes of your stressors. We also explore what coping skills and supports you have in place and identify where current, less adaptive strategies may be exacerbating your stress.
Together, we explore alternative, more adaptive ways of coping with stress and explore the narratives you hold around what’s happening.
Evalate How You Learned to Cope With Stress
We may also look at models from your caregivers as templates or blueprints for how you learned to respond to stress, and gently shift toward ways of creating more agency in your life rather than experiencing life as happening to you.
Systemic & Marginalization Considerations
We hold room for systemic issues and marginalized experiences that add additional weight and suffering to what you’re carrying.
What Stress Can Look Like
Parents of young children – often two-parent working households without much local family support working high pressure jobs in a high cost of living environment—can face a great deal of stress and overwhelm.
We look at and explore what it means for you to ask for and receive help, pay for additional help when possible, build community, and practice self-compassion while normalizing that this can be a hard time and the challenges often temporary as kids move through various developmental life stages.
For couples, we emphasize effective communication and enhancing mutual support.
What to Expect in Our First Sessions
In our first four sessions together, my focus is on getting to know you – really understanding your story, your relationships, and what brings you to therapy.
Explore Your History
Early sessions focus on your story: what’s been hard, how you’ve been coping, and what “enough” has meant in your life.
We’ll look at relationships, stressors, and daily rhythms, and start to notice patterns—where stress occurs and where triggers stress.
Set Goals
By our fifth session, we’ll start identifying therapy goals together.
I’ll share my insights based on what I’ve learned so far, and we’ll collaborate to shape a direction that feels aligned with your needs, values, and intentions.
Review & Iterate
This early work lays the foundation for meaningful, focused therapy moving forward.
I believe it’s important for us to check in regularly and adjust the treatment as needed, so it continues to support you in the best way possible.
About Me
I’m Brooke Pomerantz, a licensed therapist based in Oakland and serving clients across California, New York, and Indiana. My approach is warm, collaborative, active, and grounded in many years of clinical work experience, ongoing professional development and consultation and my desire to be accessible and deeply humane in doing this work. I’m here to support you through life’s challenges with thoughtful, personalized therapy.
Brooke Pomerantz
Brooke Pomerantz is a compassionate and experienced licensed clinical social worker dedicated to providing supportive therapy services in Oakland and through teletherapy across California. With a focus on creating a safe and nurturing environment, Brooke helps clients navigate life’s challenges, fostering growth and healing through personalized therapeutic approaches.