Therapist in Glendale, CA | EMDR, Art & Somatic Therapy
I work with Gen Z and young millennial clients who are trying to build a life that actually feels like theirs, not just one that looks acceptable from the outside. That often means sorting through career pressure, relationship patterns that keep repeating, and the quiet influence of family systems that shaped how they see themselves. My sessions combine EMDR, somatic tools, and creative approaches with straightforward talk therapy, shifting depending on what a person actually needs rather than sticking to one method. I take a decolonial, culturally responsive approach to this work, because I know identity is rarely simple, especially for people navigating more than one culture at once. Many of the people I work with are used to holding it together for everyone else, and our work starts by making room for them to stop.
Between the retail energy of the Americana at Brand and Glendale Galleria and the quieter trails winding through the Verdugo Mountains, this city holds a lot of contrast within its own borders. Brand Park offers a green, historic pocket that feels worlds away from the shopping districts just down the road, and that range shows up in the people who live here too. Bordering Burbank, Pasadena, and the neighborhoods of Northeast LA, this is a large and genuinely diverse city, home to sizable Armenian, Filipino, Latino, and other immigrant communities alongside longtime Angeleno families. That diversity means no two clients walk in with quite the same cultural backdrop, even when the struggles they're facing sound similar.
Being part of such a large, layered city means a lot of my clients here are navigating more than one set of expectations at once, from family, from culture, and from the broader pressure to succeed visibly in a competitive place. For many, there's an added weight of translating between generations, whether that means literally translating language or just interpreting very different ideas about what a good life looks like. Clients often come to me exhausted from constantly code switching between who they are at home and who they're expected to be everywhere else. People choose this practice because I understand that identity isn't a single thread to untangle, it's several woven together, and none of them need to be cut to heal. That kind of understanding tends to be the difference between therapy that feels generic and therapy that actually fits.
How it works
My approach starts with your whole story
Everything I do starts from a trauma informed place, meaning I assume your reactions make sense given what you've lived through, even before I know the details. EMDR sits at the center of my approach because a lot of what people carry isn't something they can simply talk their way out of, and I layer in a decolonial perspective that honors the cultural and historical context behind your experience. There's no single template I apply to everyone. Sessions might move through talk therapy, EMDR, somatic awareness, or creative work, shaped entirely by what's actually useful for you in that moment.
Book a discovery call
Starting out looks like a genuine conversation, not a form to fill out. I want to know what's bringing you in, what hasn't helped before, and what you're actually hoping changes, and none of that needs to sound clinical or rehearsed. Together we sketch out a plan that's built around your specific life, not a generic outline. This collaborative approach starts on day one and continues throughout our work together.
What ongoing work actually looks like
Further into the work, clients notice they're leaning less on old defense mechanisms and more on tools that genuinely hold weight under pressure. There's a steadier sense of identity, one that isn't constantly shifting based on who's in the room. A lot of the people I work with have tried therapy before and left unsatisfied, feeling like the surface got addressed but nothing underneath really moved. That's the part this work is designed to reach.
Explore my therapy services and specializations
If you're in your twenties or thirties, you might be carrying the sense that everyone around you has some formula for adulthood that you never received. Career decisions, situationships, and the ongoing work of becoming someone apart from your family can feel like a full time job on top of everything else you're managing.
In our sessions, we slow down enough to actually understand what's driving the exhaustion rather than just coping with the symptoms of it. You start recognizing the patterns that keep resurfacing, whether that's overextending yourself or avoiding hard conversations, and we work on approaches that actually fit your life instead of a one size fits all plan.
The shift that follows tends to be steady rather than dramatic. You start trusting your own decisions more, and the constant internal negotiation about who you're supposed to be starts to quiet down. Most clients tell me it finally feels like relief instead of another obligation.
Certain situations can trigger a physical reaction long before your conscious mind has caught up to what's happening, like tension flooding your body in a meeting that has nothing to do with your past. That response isn't irrational. Your nervous system is still responding to something it learned a long time ago.
EMDR addresses that stored material directly, without requiring you to recount every painful detail out loud, which is often a relief for people who've avoided certain memories for years. It helps your brain finish processing something that got interrupted, so old experiences stop hijacking your present reactions.
Throughout the process, the pace belongs entirely to you. Many clients find that reactivity softens over time, replaced by a quieter, steadier way of moving through situations that used to feel overwhelming.
Certain feelings are hard to put into words no matter how much you've already processed intellectually. Art therapy offers a different way in, one that doesn't require language to be useful.
Working with materials, color, or image lets things surface in a roundabout way, often getting closer to the truth of an experience than trying to narrate it directly ever could. It also relieves the pressure to have everything figured out before you're allowed to feel it.
No artistic experience is necessary, and there's no wrong approach here. It's simply another entry point into the same honest work, especially valuable on days when words feel out of reach.
You can fully understand where your anxiety comes from and still feel your chest tighten every time a certain subject gets brought up. Understanding alone doesn't always convince the body to let go, which is exactly what somatic work addresses.
We build awareness of physical sensation as it happens in real time, so you begin noticing tension or bracing before it fully takes hold. That awareness becomes something usable in the moment, not just something you understand after the fact.
This approach works naturally alongside EMDR and talk therapy, whether we meet in person here in Glendale or connect through virtual sessions. Over time, your body becomes more of a source of information than a source of stress.
PTSD doesn't always look dramatic from the outside. It can show up as staying unusually alert in ordinary settings, or as reactions that feel disproportionate until you understand the history behind them.
My approach keeps safety and pacing at the center of everything, meaning you're never required to relive every detail before you're ready. Every step of the process follows what you can actually handle, not a fixed script.
Over time, the shift is gradual but genuinely felt. The past stops running your present so completely, and clients often tell me they didn't believe that kind of change was possible for them.
Childhood trauma doesn't have to involve a single dramatic event to be real. It can look like growing up with a parent who couldn't handle your emotions, or being expected to manage the household's mood before your own.
This work begins with safety as the foundation, always. We move at a pace that respects what you're actually able to hold, never rushing toward insight for its own sake.
As time goes on, clients start relating to their history in a new way, one that includes what happened without letting it define everything that follows. Witnessing that shift is some of the most meaningful work I do.
For some teens, individual sessions only address part of the picture, and being with peers facing something similar changes the entire experience. Group work gives teens a chance to feel less alone in whatever they're carrying, whether that's anxiety, family stress, or cultural pressure to succeed.
These groups are built to feel genuinely safe, not like another place to perform for adults. Teens get room to be honest, and many find it easier to receive support from people their own age.
Being the one who's struggling doesn't make a teen the outlier here. Support looks like connection, not correction, and that distinction ends up mattering a great deal.
I also work with teenagers who are already managing more than their age should require, whether that's family tension, anxiety, or the habit of monitoring everyone else's emotions before their own.
Teens tend to open up when they feel taken seriously instead of managed, and sessions give them language for what they're experiencing before it becomes a lifelong pattern. Parents often notice their teen starting to express feelings directly instead of acting them out.
This work meets teens exactly where they are, not where a general guideline says they should be, whether we meet in person or virtually.
Who I serve
My practice serves clients throughout Glendale and the surrounding communities, including Burbank, Pasadena, La Crescenta, and the neighborhoods of Northeast LA. I offer in-person sessions in Glendale and virtual sessions for clients anywhere in California who prefer meeting remotely. Whether you're closer to the Americana at Brand or up near the Verdugo Mountains, reaching my office is easy. An embedded map below shows the surrounding service area.
Hi, I'm Cristina Lugo — LCSW therapist specializing in young adults
I'm a licensed psychotherapist specializing in EMDR, working with Gen Z and young millennial clients across Glendale and the greater Los Angeles area. As a Puerto Rican American therapist, I understand what it means to hold multiple cultural identities at once, and that understanding shapes how I show up in every session. My practice is meant to feel like a place where you don't have to translate yourself to be understood. I'm not here to fix you, because nothing about you was ever broken to begin with. I'm here to help you feel like one whole person again, instead of several roles stitched together.
FAQ about my services
What is the best type of therapy for young adults and teenagers?
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer. The most effective therapy depends on your stage of life, identity, and needs. EMDR, mindfulness, ACT, and creative approaches can all be helpful when tailored to you.
Do you offer therapy in person? What about virtual? Which one is better?
I prefer in-person therapy because it creates a stronger sense of connection at my Pasadena office. Virtual sessions are also available for convenience, and some clients even choose a mix of both.
Do you take insurance?
I am considered out-of-network. Many PPO plans reimburse part of the cost, and I provide monthly superbills so you can request reimbursement directly from your insurance company.
What is your cancellation policy?
I ask for at least 24 hours’ notice if you need to cancel. If we can’t reschedule in the same week, the full session fee will apply.
Do you offer a sliding scale?
I believe that therapy should be within reach, regardless of what life throws your way. I offer a community-minded sliding scale for individuals affected by systemic stressors, financial strain, or unexpected crises. If this applies to you, please let me know. Together we’ll make a plan that supports your healing while honoring the sustainability of my practice.