Jill enjoys working with military families, veterans, children, couples, individual, family systems, crisis, addiction, supporters of people battling addiction, infertility, substance abuse, new mothers, parenting, and learning disabilities. She believes in bringing compassion, kindness, and genuine care to helping others. Jill is skilled at a variety of therapy methods to meet individuals specific needs to include: Motivational Interviewing (MI), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Solution-Focused Therapy. She has 7 years experience with helping others, providing counseling to neglected youth and conducting group therapy sessions. She has experience working with adults as a Certified Alcohol and Drug Addiction Consultant assisting others in reaching recovery goals. Jill has a Bachelors degree in Human Development, Health Emphasis from California State University and her Masters of Arts in Counseling Psychology from National University.

Heather’s approach to mental health is holistic, person-centered, and tailored uniquely to best fit the evolving needs of each individual, couple or family. From a humanistic and strength-based lens, she offers a variety of modalities including Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT), Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Mindfulness, Play-based therapy, and psychoeducational. Heather prides herself on bringing compassion and kindness into each session, creating a strong therapeutic alliance wherein change can occur. Heather has several years' experience working with children and teens in various settings, and also has a background in working with grief/loss, anxiety, depression, and complex trauma. Heather loves working with children, teens, parents, individual adults, couples, and families. Heather holds a Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Alliant University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from CSUSM. 

Toni provides behavioral health services to children, parents, couples, elderly, and families. She uses a compassionate humanistic approach to build a trusting and safe working relationship so clients feel comfortable collaborating with their clinician. Toni also works with families who experience loss and deep grief. She compassionately supports them through issues of adjustment and rebuilding, particularly after complicated loss. Toni enjoys working with young children and their parents and is comfortable working with clients who are struggling with a variety of challenging issues such as anxiety, family changes, parenting, employment, sibling and other relationship issues, self-esteem, and depression. Toni is a Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (AMFT 143408) who is supervised by Erica McDaniel, LCSW. Toni has a Master’s degree in Psychology from Alliant International University and a Bachelor’s degree from University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). Toni specializes in EMDR (certified), Internal Family Systems, and Solution Focused Therapy. She also has experience in CBT, DBT and Emotion-Focused Therapy. 

Marissa is a caring clinician with a passion for working with children, teens and families. Marissa works at Oceanside High School and has been leading bereavement groups for hospice for several years. She understands grief and its effects. With her background rooted in Human Development, she has a warm, empathic approach with a focus on human connection and a Person-Centered approach. She offers support, guidance and structure to enable discovery of personal solutions to problems. Her goal is to create a space to understand. Marissa is genuine. She holds a Masters of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy from Touro University. Marissa joined Grow Through Life Counseling in 2022 to serve the Oceanside and surrounding communities. 

Emily has experience working with transitional age youth (TAY), adults, LGBTQIA, geriatric (75+), children, families, and couples. Emily first started her career in mental health working in an ABA outpatient program with young children. She continued this passion in mental health as an intern in an outpatient program that served low income, homeless, and probation populations. Emily strives to make a difference in families and young children when working in an outpatient school based program where she collaborated with schools in improving emotional support for children, teens, and families. She specializes in anxiety, depression, mood disorders, and trauma. Her evidence based modalities that she uses is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT). She holds a Masters in Marriage and Family Therapy from Alliant International University. She believes in Individualized treatment and strength based approaches towards aiding individuals, couples, and families in reaching their goals. Emily is supervised by Erica McDaniel, LCSW. 

Tais is passionate about providing client-centered, strength-based, culturally sensitive care to improve the well-being of children, youth, and families. Tais has worked in a variety of settings, including schools, Child Welfare Services, and Behavioral Health Services. She worked in the adoptions and guardianship programs of Child Welfare Services for six years and for the past two years she has been a Licensed clinician with Behavioral Health Services for children, youth, and family programs. Her experience includes supporting children with attachment disruptions, trauma, emotional regulation, and behavioral issues, as well as working with clients of all ages navigating life transitions, interpersonal relationship challenges, and symptoms of anxiety and depression. Her specialty trainings includes trauma-informed practice, Solution-focused Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), mindfulness, attachment-centered interventions, enhancing parent-child connections, and multiple adoption specialty training. Tais also has international experience, having worked in Brazil with adults and children affected by traumatic events. She is fluent in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, allowing her to connect with a diverse range of clients. She graduated from San Diego State University with a Master of Social Work. 

Tais is passionate about providing client-centered, strength-based, culturally sensitive care to improve the well-being of children, youth, and families. Tais has worked in a variety of settings, including schools, Child Welfare Services, and Behavioral Health Services. She worked in the adoptions and guardianship programs of Child Welfare Services for six years and for the past two years she has been a Licensed clinician with Behavioral Health Services for children, youth, and family programs. Her experience includes supporting children with attachment disruptions, trauma, emotional regulation, and behavioral issues, as well as working with clients of all ages navigating life transitions, interpersonal relationship challenges, and symptoms of anxiety and depression. Her specialty trainings includes trauma-informed practice, Solution-focused Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), mindfulness, attachment-centered interventions, enhancing parent-child connections, and multiple adoption specialty training. Tais also has international experience, having worked in Brazil with adults and children affected by traumatic events. She is fluent in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, allowing her to connect with a diverse range of clients. She graduated from San Diego State University with a Master of Social Work. 

Sarah Gallagher is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor who graduated in 2018 with a master’s in counseling psychology from the University of Hawaii at Hilo. She has worked with different populations, including people with substance use issues and other mental health issues in a dual diagnosis in a residential rehab, youth and their families doing Intensive In-Home therapy, and young adults at a counseling center at the university that she attended. She uses different orientations, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy skill sets, motivational interviewing, humanistic and more, to help facilitate a safe environment for personal growth and development and allow the heal process to start. While she has worked with people of all ages, such as children as young as 8 to 65+, she enjoys working with teenagers through adulthood. She was promoted to a clinical supervisor in Oceanside in 2024. 

Erica has wide range of experience from small children to adults and enjoys working with people from all walks of life. She believes everyone has a unique and incredible story to tell and feels honored  to be the one to hear it. Erica is rooted in attachment and psychodynamic theories and always comes in with a client-centered, strength based approach. She specializes in trauma, but believes the most important aspect of therapy is the therapeutic alliance between clinician and client. Once that is established, she believes anything is possible. Erica is a second generation LCSW and has spent the last 15 years in the helping field. Out of college, she worked as a case manager to children and families with special needs, and then for a mental health non-profit. While in grad school, she spent her practicum  as a school social worker working with middle schoolers and teen moms and obtained her Pupil Personnel Services Credential (PPSC). After grad school, she spent 4 years in the adoptions program of Child Welfare Services working with foster youth, biological families, and adoptive families. Once licensed, she worked in a community mental health clinic with adults diagnosed with severe and persistent mental illness. Finally, she found herself at GTL working with active duty military and military family members. She has loved every experience and population she has encountered and it has only deepened her passion for helping others. Erica has her Bachelors of Arts in English from UC Berkeley and her Masters of Social Work from San Diego State University. In addition to being a clinician at GTL, Erica is also a clinical supervisor and a clinical lead of the Oceanside office. In November of 2023, she was promoted to Director of Clinical Leadership because of her talent to lead and provide support to our team at large.