Cristina Rodriguez, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist #138696

Cristina Rodriguez, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist #138696 Cristina Rodriguez is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, #138696 Hello, and welcome to my practice. It was scary. Anxious? Fearful? Depressed?

It takes a lot of courage to be here, and I welcome the opportunity to speak with you. I am a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist serving clients throughout California. I specialize in children, families, individuals and couples. I have experience treating anxiety, depression, PTSD, relationship issues and adjustment disorders, social anxiety, separation anxiety, OCD and delusional disorders. I

use a variety of therapeutic styles, which include DBT, CBT, narrative therapy, psychodynamic therapy, solution focused therapy/brief therapy, and Bowenian family therapy. As a client, you can expect a client-centered approach in sessions which will provide a safe, empathetic space for process. I believe we have many facets to who we are as individuals. My specialty is identifying those parts that need healing, as well as those parts that are sources of strength for you to lean into during tough moments. Each client is unique, and I work with you to tailor goals for therapy to fit your specific needs. I decided to become a therapist in my mid-30s after surviving a major life change. Therapy provided me with a safe space to feel angry, sad, hopeful and everything in between during the journey into my unknown. Therapy lit the path I knew I had to take in order to find a new, healthier version of myself. Are your relationships meeting your needs? My goal is to be a beacon of light for you as you navigate your unique journey to wellness. As a woman now in my early 40s (!), and mother of 3 with a blended family, I've experienced a good bit. I bring a felt sense of empathy and compassion to all of my clients, which includes individuals, children, couples and families. I received a Bachelor's degree in Teaching and a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from San Jose State University in 2008. After many years as an elementary school teacher, I decided to embrace life transitions and go back to school for my Masters degree. I attended John F. Kennedy University in San Jose, CA and received my Masters degree in Holistic Counseling Psychology in 2020. I began my Associateship working with children as a counselor with Discovery Counseling Center in Danville, CA for 2 years. I then transitioned to working with children, teens and families as an Associate MFT with the San Joaquin County Behavioral Health Department for another 2 years. I worked with clients experiencing moderate to severe depression, anxiety, PTSD, delusional disorders, schizophrenia, families experiencing divorce and domestic violence. In addition, I worked with adult individuals and couples in a private practice setting via Telehealth. I am currently Telehealth only and can work with anyone who lives in California. Telehealth is a powerful tool. I have had many moving therapy sessions and have witnessed true growth in my clients through video sessions. I am confident in my ability to use this platform and I believe it supports real, therapeutic change. I look forward to speaking with you and walking with you as you navigate your personal path to healing.

✨Have you ever had someone literally offer you the world and everything in it, only to sn**ch it back just as fast? The ...
09/01/2026

✨Have you ever had someone literally offer you the world and everything in it, only to sn**ch it back just as fast? The compliments, the grand gestures, the promises that feel too good to be true. Love Bombing! Study the signs, be aware, and make discerning decisions. If something feels too perfect…it most likely is. ❤️

✨Trauma bonds can make unhealthy relationships feel impossible to leave. When relationships cycle between pain and comfo...
08/11/2026

✨Trauma bonds can make unhealthy relationships feel impossible to leave.

When relationships cycle between pain and comfort, the brain often begins chasing the relief rather than recognizing the danger. With time and continued conditioning, this can create deep confusion, self-doubt, and shame.

Healing isn’t only walking away. Healing begins by learning to regulate your nervous system, rebuild trust in yourself, grieve what you hoped the relationship could become, and discover that love can feel calm, consistent, and emotionally safe.

If this resonates with you, you are not “crazy.” You are not broken.
Your nervous system adapted to survive. With support, awareness, and compassion, it can learn safety again. If this resonates with you, save this post for when you need the reminder. Share it with someone who may need to hear it 🧡

Have you ever felt torn between what you know and what you do?That uncomfortable tension has a name: Cognitive Dissonanc...
07/23/2026

Have you ever felt torn between what you know and what you do?

That uncomfortable tension has a name: Cognitive Dissonance.

It isn’t a sign that you’re weak or “crazy.” It’s a normal psychological experience that can become especially intense after trauma. Our brains naturally seek consistency, but when our beliefs, emotions, and behaviors don’t align, we experience inner conflict.

Sometimes that conflict keeps us stuck in relationships, patterns, or decisions that no longer fit who we are. Healing begins by noticing the tension without judging it.

A trauma-informed approach reminds us that many of our beliefs once helped us survive. A DBT perspective teaches us that two seemingly opposite truths can exist at the same time. A CBT lens helps us examine whether our thoughts are still serving us. Together, these approaches create space for clarity, self-compassion, and meaningful change.

💚 Which statement resonated with you most? Share below—I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Ooof, Scapegoating is a tough one.                                              The longer you are exposed to being blam...
06/26/2026

Ooof, Scapegoating is a tough one. The longer you are exposed to being blamed for problems you didn’t create can leave you questioning your worth, your memory, and even your reality.

The truth is that scapegoating says more about the system than it does about the person being targeted.

Healing often begins when you stop asking, “How do I prove I’m not the problem?” and start asking, “What if I never was?”

You deserve relationships where accountability is shared, communication is respectful, and your voice matters.

✨Save this post for later and share it with someone who may need this reminder. ✨

⚡️Triangulation is one of the most common and often overlooked relational dynamics.Sometimes it appears as gossip. Somet...
06/16/2026

⚡️Triangulation is one of the most common and often overlooked relational dynamics.

Sometimes it appears as gossip. Sometimes it looks like recruiting allies. Sometimes it happens so subtly that we don’t realize we’re participating in it.

From a trauma-informed perspective, triangulation is often a learned adaptation to environments where direct communication felt unsafe. While it may reduce discomfort in the moment, it usually increases confusion, conflict, and mistrust over time.

Healing involves building the capacity for direct, respectful, and honest communication, even when it’s uncomfortable.

What was modeled for us is not always what is healthiest for us.

💛 Direct communication protects relationships.
💛 Boundaries protect peace.
💛 Accountability supports growth. Triangulation can occur in families, friendships, workplaces, romantic relationships, and co-parenting relationships.

At its core, triangulation shifts communication away from direct resolution and into a three-person dynamic that often creates confusion, tension, and division.

✨ Healthy communication: Person A → Person B

⚠️ Triangulation: Person A → Person C → Person B.
⚡️When in doubt, ask someone directly. It might just save a friendship. ⚡️

🖤Arguably one of the most toxic tools used to manipulate and control another person, Gaslighting has lasting effects on ...
05/25/2026

🖤Arguably one of the most toxic tools used to manipulate and control another person, Gaslighting has lasting effects on the brain and one’s ability to distinguish their reality and truth from the reality being created for them. Healing comes in time and is possible. Send to someone who needs the support 🖤

Projection is not just about miscommunication. It’s about unprocessed emotion looking for a place to land.Across these t...
04/28/2026

Projection is not just about miscommunication. It’s about unprocessed emotion looking for a place to land.
Across these three parts, we explored:
• What projection is and how it forms
• What it feels like to be on the receiving end
• How to communicate skillfully when it’s present
From a DBT lens, projection invites us into:
• Mindfulness (observe, don’t absorb)
• Emotion regulation (tend to what’s actually yours)
• Interpersonal effectiveness (communicate with clarity and boundaries)
From a holistic lens, projection is protective.
It’s the nervous system attempting to organize pain, often rooted in past experiences that have not yet been processed fully.
Healing doesn’t require perfection in communication. It requires awareness, intention, and the willingness to stay connected to yourself while relating to another.
✨You can be compassionate and boundaried.
✨You can validate and stay rooted in your truth.
✨You can choose not to carry what was never yours.
This is the work of unfolding 🧡

✨Projection is a common psychological defense mechanism where we attribute our own thoughts, emotions, or fears to someo...
04/23/2026

✨Projection is a common psychological defense mechanism where we attribute our own thoughts, emotions, or fears to someone else.

From a DBT lens, projection often shows up when we move quickly from emotion → interpretation → reaction, without pausing to check the facts.

For example:“I feel hurt” can become “They intended to hurt me.”

But those are not the same.

From a holistic perspective, projection is also connected to the nervous system and past experiences. When something feels familiar, especially relationally, your brain may try to make sense of it quickly by filling in the gaps based on what it already knows.

This isn’t a failure. It’s a protective pattern.

The work is not to eliminate the reaction, but to slow it down.

To ask: What are the observable facts? What story am I telling myself? What might this be bringing up in me?

Wise Mind lives in that pause—where your emotions are honored, and your interpretations are gently examined.

With practice, projection becomes less about reacting outward and more about understanding inward.💛

Sometimes the hardest part of loving someone is realizing that their pain may not let them see you clearly.             ...
03/26/2026

Sometimes the hardest part of loving someone is realizing that their pain may not let them see you clearly.
Projection can feel like being misunderstood no matter how gently you show up.
No matter how much you try.
From a DBT lens, this often lives in emotion mind-where fear and past wounds shape present meaning.
From a holistic lens,
it’s a nervous system trying to protect... even when it pushes connection away.
You are allowed to validate someone’s feelings without accepting a story that isn’t yours.
You are allowed to stay, and you are allowed to stay with yourself.
You are allowed to stop proving your intentions to people who are committed to misunderstanding them. 🤎🌻✨

✨Attachment isn’t just about how you love.It’s about how your nervous system learned to survive connection.If you grew u...
02/24/2026

✨Attachment isn’t just about how you love.
It’s about how your nervous system learned to survive connection.

If you grew up needing to scan for inconsistency, you may now scan for abandonment.
If you learned closeness felt overwhelming, you may now equate distance with safety.

These patterns are not character flaws.
They are adaptive strategies.

Through a DBT and holistic lens, attachment healing isn’t about labeling yourself as “anxious” or “avoidant.”
It’s about noticing:

• When Emotion Mind is activated
• When you’re reacting from an old wound
• When you can pause and access Wise Mind
• When you can check the facts instead of assuming threat

Secure attachment is not perfection.
It’s repair.
It’s regulation.
It’s boundaries.
It’s choosing response over reactivity.

And here’s the hopeful part:
Attachment can shift.

Neuroplasticity is real.
Nervous systems can learn safety.
Relationships can become corrective experiences.

Healing attachment means:
– Building self-trust
– Practicing co-regulation
– Tolerating vulnerability
– Staying present 10% longer
– Offering yourself compassion instead of shame

You are not “too much.” You are not “being dramatic.”
You are not “too distant.”
You are patterned — and patterns can be reshaped.

🤍 Which attachment pattern feels most familiar to you right now?

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Palo Alto, CA
95337

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Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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