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About Lisa Sonin Larsen, PsyD

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You are not broken; you're human. You don't have to carry the weight of your past alone.

I'm Lisa Larsen, PsyD. I'm a psychologist in Southern California who works with trauma, grief, and the kind of pain that doesn't fit into neat diagnostic boxes.

I didn't come to this work by accident. Suffering is no stranger to me; neither is feeling disenfranchised or othered. I use a wheelchair user living with chronic illness — and I've navigated my own share of grief and traumatic stress. I don’t say that to impress you. It matters because it shapes how I work and who I'm able to help.

I know what it's like to feel failed by the medical system — the kind that treats symptoms instead of people. I know what it's like to sit across from someone and wonder if they actually get the kind of life you're living. And I know what it's like to find support that actually meets you where you are — not where a textbook says you should be.

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After 23 years as a therapist, what I rely on most isn't clinical theory. It's compassion, humanity, and the hard-won wisdom that comes from showing up in real, embodied relationship. That's what I offer

Different colored skin hands intertwined in a loving gesture.

Who I work with

I work with teens and adults navigating:
• Trauma (big and small)
• Grief and loss — death, but also the grief of chronic illness, divorce, faith transitions, estrangement, and the life you thought you'd have
• Chronic illness and disability
• Minority stress — LGBTQIA+ and other marginalized identities
• Life transitions that feel disorienting
 

Grief doesn't always come from death. It can look like a breakup, a lost identity, a body that no longer works the way it used to, or a future that disappeared. If that resonates, you're in the right place.

You don't have to navigate this alone. 

How I Work

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I don't do "just talking" therapy. If talk alone worked, you'd have already solved this by now.

I work with your nervous system — because that's where trauma and grief actually live. Not in the story you tell about what happened, but in the body's physical, felt sense of it.

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My approach draws on:

  • EMDR Therapy — a structured, evidence-based method that helps the brain reprocess stuck memories so they no longer drive your reactions in the present

  • Flash Technique — a gentle, low-activation EMDR approach that processes traumatic material without requiring you to dwell in the distress

  • Somatic Stress Release — using sound, breath, and movement to unlock tension patterns the body has been holding

  • Ericksonian Hypnosis — a collaborative, indirect style of hypnosis that works with your natural trance states to access inner resources and create change

All of this is grounded in a solution-oriented, strength-based perspective — which means we don't spend our time just dissecting the problem. We build on what already works in you and move toward your hopes and dreams.

I'm an LGBTQIA+ affirming therapist. I understand the weight of minority stress — the cumulative toll of living in a world that wasn't built for you.

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This is 100% online

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I see clients across all of California from my home office — often with a blanket and a cat nearby. Many clients find they're actually more able to feel and track their body's responses in their own space.

Ready to feel seen and heard?

What I Offer

Serene Forest Stream

If you're skeptical...

Good. If you've had bad experiences with therapy before, I get it.

What I can offer

I won't pathologize you. I won't treat your symptoms as problems to be eliminated. I won't pretend to have all the answers. I'll meet you where you actually are and help your nervous system find its way back to what it already knows how to do.

A 15-minute call costs nothing and tells you everything about whether I'm the right fit.
 

Not sure which one is right for you? 

Experience and training

Degrees

  • Doctor of Psychology (PsyD), Clinical Psychology from John F. Kennedy University in 2003

  • Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Literature and Legal Studies from UC Santa Cruz, 1991

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Licensure

  • Psychologist in California since 2003 (#PSY 19046)

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Certifications/Special Training

  • Somatic Stress Release 100-hour certification from Embody Lab

  • EMDRIA-certified EMDR therapist since 2008

  • Extensive training in Clinical Hypnosis from the Milton H. Erickson Foundation and Michael Yapko’s 100-hour hypnosis class

 

For more about my degrees and experience, click here.

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Want to discuss how to move past your painful experiences and feel present again?

Quoted in the Press

Over time, I have been blessed enough to be quoted in various articles. I thought I would share these ideas and articles with you because they are important topics. I hope that they help you.

Online Therapist for Grief & Trauma in Lancaster, CA

Lisa S. Larsen, Psy.D.(she/her/hers)

3123 W Ave L 8, Lancaster, CA 93536

+16612336771

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I offer exclusively online therapy for your comfort and convenience.

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Please call to make an appointment or submit your phone number in the contact form. Thank you. I look forward to speaking with you soon!

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Take charge of your wellness today.

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