Meet Our Team
At California Integrative Therapy, we have a wide range of practitioners, each with their own unique style and approach.
Who We Are...
At California Integrative Therapy, we’re proud of our talented practitioners. Once you have decided which therapist you want to work with, go to our scheduling page so we can help you set up an initial free consultation with one or more of them.
Dr. chris tickner
(He/Him/His) Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
Currently interviewing new couples for future work, no immediate availability
Dr. Tickner, Co-Founder and Clinical Director at California Integrative Therapy, is a Marriage and Family Therapist (License 42576), couples therapist, clinical supervisor, consultant, trainer, and guest lecturer in Pasadena and Sacramento, California. Dr. Tickner is now exclusively providing couples therapy in Pasadena. He also provides group therapy in Pasadena. Dr. Tickner holds both Masters (Naropa University) and Doctoral (Santa Barbara Graduate Institute) degrees in Somatic Psychology. He has over 25 years of experience, is a Certified Relational Somatic Psychotherapist, a Level Two PACT (Psychobiological Approach to Couple Therapy) therapist, and has advanced training in various forms of trauma therapy as well as Hakomi Psychotherapy.
With roots in somatic therapy, mindfulness, and Buddhism, Dr. Tickner believes that genuine caring, respect and empathy are powerful tools that allow his clients to unfold gracefully into the resilient and healthy people they were meant to be.
Chris is a member of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, the Glendale Area Mental Health Professionals Association, and the United States Association for Body Psychotherapy.
Andrea-Marie Stark (She/Her/Hers)
Currently taking new adult individuals and couples
Andrea-Marie Stark has studied Hakomi and Trauma Therapy and is completing a doctoral degree in Depth Psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute in Santa Barbara, California. Her pathway resonates with Pacifica’s motto, animae mundi colendae gratia, for the sake of tending the soul of the world. Andrea-Marie engages in depth based interventions such as dream work, art and archetypal journeys. Her healing philosophy embraces eco-therapy, eco-spirituality, addresses intergenerational trauma, racial and ethnic equality, non-colonial attitudes, and indigenous wisdom traditions. She has been honored to study healing practices with indigenous healers of the Americas and of the Tibetan Bon Buddhist tradition. Andrea-Marie is a member of The American Tarot Association, and a Professional Member of the ICRT Reiki Membership Association, she is certified in Radiant Heart Meditation and had a private mentorship with the Los Angeles School for Spiritual Arts. She has studied tarot with international scholars Mary Greer and Rachel Pollack and is a Holy Fire and Shakti Reiki Master. She is a founding member of the Dragonfly tribe, a collective of healers based in North America.
Andrea-Marie works with spirit and soul, her approach is non-denominational and honoring of your personal life choices. Your one wild and precious life (as poet Mary Oliver wrote) is the pathway for your soul. Andrea-Marie will help you navigate the peaks and vales of the deepening journey.
lane assaf
(She/Her) Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (124236)
Currently taking new individuals and couples
Lane works with individuals, couples and families. With a rare combination of extensive training and life experience, Lane is able to go deep quickly with her clients. While she is new to the field, she practices much more like a veteran, able to both help her clients feel seen, heard and safe, while challenging them to grow and overcome obstacles.
She has expert skills in working with couples on various relational issues including communication, intimacy, and betrayal recovery. Additionally, a significant part of her work focuses on recovery from posttraumatic stress disorder, childhood abuse and neglect, and sexual trauma.
Lane works with clients from a variety of socio-economic, cultural, and racial backgrounds, as well as clients from various sexual orientations and identities. She is LGBTQ+ friendly and affirming.
Lane works within a holistic lens, understanding the importance of working with the entire system rather than simply attending to the symptoms. She uses a variety of approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Internal Family Systems, Rogerian, Psychodynamic, and Gottman Method of Couples Therapy (Certified Level One), along with Mindfulness practices and Somatic Psychotherapy.
In her free time Lane enjoys reading, gardening, spending time with her family and in nature, learning and growing as a parent, and snuggling with her cat Bandit.
Kim Bielak
(She/Her) Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (130527)
Current not taking new clients.
Kim offers clients a space to slow down and simply breathe. Through a naturally grounding and empathic presence, a strong relationship with each of her clients, and a holistic and mindfulness-centered approach, she helps both individuals and couples feel safe and supported enough to relax their grip and explore what’s really getting in the way of the deep wellbeing, relationships, and lives they long for and deserve.
Both building upon neuroscience’s growing understanding of the connection between mind and body and as a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT-200), Kim takes a highly integrative approach to the therapeutic process and incorporates evidence-based mindfulness, somatic, and cognitive-behavioral practices into her work, in addition to creative and imaginative techniques that help clients access parts of themselves buried deep beneath the surface. Kim holds a Masters in Clinical Psychology from Antioch University, has additional education in Mindfulness, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Positive Psychology, and Gestalt.
If you found your way here, the idea of therapy might still be feeling a little scary or unknown. But something brought you right here, right now. So whenever you’re ready, Kim is interested in getting to know whatever that something is within you a little bit more. Let this be your call.
Kelsey blazak
(She/Her) Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (132918)
Currently taking new individuals, couples and teens.
Kelsey brings a warm, heart-centered, and grounded energy to her work. She offers integrative, relational, depth-focused, and psychodynamic therapy for adults, couples, and teens. This means her approach is tailored to support specific issues, needs, and goals and helps clients dig a little deeper to better understand unconscious patterns and beliefs. Coming to sessions with openness and curiosity, Kelsey tends to clients’ experiences in the here-and-now.
When we make space for our full humanity to be known and held with compassion within a safe therapeutic relationship, meaningful change is possible. All parts of your identity are welcome and are central to understanding not only who you are, but how these unique factors shape your life experience. Kelsey offers trauma-informed, LGBTQIA+ affirmative, and culturally-responsive therapy.
Kelsey received her Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute, where she studied Jungian and Depth Psychotherapy. She also received training in psychodynamic, psychoanalytic, and somatic approaches. Through this, she deepened her appreciation for the symbolic, imaginal, and unseen parts of life.
Whether looking to improve relationships or process difficult feelings, experiences, and life transitions, Kelsey can support you in addressing what matters most.
courtney R. Lee
(She/Her/Hers)
Reg. Assoc. Clin. Counselor (6212)
Currently taking new individuals
Courtney specializes in EMDR and integrative therapy for anxiety, depression, and PTSD. She uses an individualized approach, employing somatic, humanistic, psychodynamic, mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral therapy, and other evidence-based treatment modalities to help clients find relief from suffering and experience greater fulfillment in their lives and relationships. She works collaboratively with you to identify patterns of thought and behavior that may be preventing you from living the life you want. Her primary focus is to build a strong therapeutic alliance and to create a safe and supportive space for you to develop awareness, acceptance, and ultimately, to create change.
A significant part of Courtney’s practice involves the use of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR therapy. EMDR is a structured, individual therapy that encourages the client to briefly focus on a trauma memory while simultaneously experiencing bilateral stimulation (BLS), typically eye movements or tapping, which leads to a reduction in the vividness and emotion associated with the trauma memory. EMDR helps uncover unconscious negative beliefs that are tied to one’s unprocessed traumatic memories. As these memories are reprocessed, they can be connected to new and empowering beliefs, allowing your life to move in a positive and healing direction.
Courtney provides a nurturing environment for individuals, couples, and groups to explore health and wellness through mind, body, and spirit. She has a Master of Arts degree in Counseling from Loyola Marymount University and completed additional graduate studies at the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University. Her training in EMDR exceeds the recommendations set forth by the EMDR International Association (EMDRIA).
scott whelan
(He/Him) Registered Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (132994)
Currently taking new individuals
Adults, Kids and Teens
You may be at a very difficult point in your life, feeling anxious, depressed, stuck or overwhelmed. The very fact that you are here seeking therapy speaks to your inherent resourcefulness and drive towards change and hope. Unresolved past experiences may have led you to adopt roles or patterns in your life that do not feel aligned with who you truly are. Through our work together we will bring compassion and understanding to your story, connecting the dots between present and past, empowering you to live a fulfilling and authentic life full of possibility.
Scott is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist and a Board-Certified Music Therapist in Pasadena, California. Specializing in trauma, Scott values a compassionate and collaborative approach, supporting clients in re-connecting with their own authenticity and resilience. Scott considers it a privilege to support and witness each of his client’s unique strengths and stories as they seek to create meaning, growth and hope.
Scott works from a Narrative approach while integrating trauma-informed, resource-oriented, and evidenced-based therapies. Over the past decade Scott has worked extensively with LGBTQ+ individuals, teens, and young adults in all levels of care. He is passionate in affirming and celebrating authentic self-expression. Scott is a skilled group facilitator using Music Therapy, Narrative Therapy, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) in creative ways to foster connection and empowerment. Scott considers it a joy to align with people of all ages as they navigate the effects of trauma, marginalization, life transitions, or crisis.