Felicia Ruiz

I believe therapy should feel like a real conversation with a real person. My approach is warm, direct, collaborative, and rooted in curiosity. I don’t believe people should be reduced to a diagnosis, a list of symptoms, or the hardest thing they’ve ever experienced. There is always more to the story. My background spans clinical mental health, health and wellness, nursing, and fitness, which has deeply influenced the way I approach therapy. I am passionate about the connection between our mental, emotional, and physical well-being and believe we have to look at the whole person to truly understand what may be happening in one part of their life. I work with clients navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, chronic illness, relationship and family difficulties, emotional dysregulation, personality disorders, major life transitions, and those who may not have a name for what they’re experiencing yet—they simply know something isn’t working anymore. A large part of my work is helping people become curious about their own patterns: Why does this affect me so deeply? Why do I keep responding this way even when I know it isn’t helping? What am I actually feeling underneath my reaction? And, perhaps most importantly, what do I do with that information once I understand it? I don’t believe in forcing every person into one therapeutic model. Depending on what you need, our work may include cognitive and behavioral strategies, emotional regulation skills, psychoeducation, mindfulness and grounding, exploring relationships and attachment patterns, or simply creating space to talk through something you haven’t been able to make sense of on your own. Clients can expect me to be compassionate without being passive. I’ll listen and validate, but I’ll also ask questions, challenge you when it’s helpful, and encourage you to consider perspectives you may not have before. We’ll laugh when there’s room to laugh, sit with the hard things when there isn’t, and work together to find tools that make sense in your actual life. You don’t have to walk into therapy knowing exactly what’s wrong, what you need, or even where to begin. Sometimes figuring that out together is where the work starts.

I am just like you in the therapy room. I believe humor has a place in healing, and I don’t expect therapy to feel clinical or uncomfortable simply because we are talking about difficult things. You are allowed to take your time, be skeptical, and tell me when something isn’t working for you. Outside of being a therapist, I’m a mom, a writer, a lifelong learner, and an avid fitness enthusiast. I’m passionate about the connection between mental health, physical health, and overall wellness. When time allows, I still love teaching fitness classes and personal training. I value authenticity, curiosity, compassion, and the ability to hold two truths at the same time. Sometimes life is incredibly hard and incredibly beautiful at once.

I hope clients walk away knowing themselves better and feeling more capable of handling whatever life puts in front of them. Insight matters, but eventually we have to be able to do something with that understanding. I want clients to leave with tools they can actually use, a better understanding of their patterns and needs, and the ability to recognize when an old way of coping is no longer serving them. Most importantly, I hope they realize that growth doesn’t mean becoming an entirely different person. Sometimes it means learning to trust yourself, make different choices when you need to, and recognize how much strength you already had.

Movement, music, cooking, writing, and finding small pockets of quiet whenever life allows it. I’ve also learned that sometimes self-care isn’t doing something at all—it’s giving myself permission to rest without feeling like I have to earn it first.

I’ve always been interested in understanding the human experience and the “why” beneath what we see on the surface. Why does something affect one person deeply while another experiences it differently? Why do we repeat patterns even when we know they aren’t good for us? How do the ways we learned to protect ourselves continue showing up long after circumstances have changed? Mental health gave me a place to explore those questions while doing work that genuinely matters to me. One of the things I value most is helping someone move from asking, “What’s wrong with me?” to understanding, “There is a reason I learned to respond this way.” Understanding the reason doesn’t excuse harmful behavior or mean we have to remain stuck—it gives us somewhere to begin.

I work with children, adolescents, and adults experiencing anxiety, depression, trauma, grief, emotional dysregulation, chronic illness, relationship and family difficulties, personality disorders, neurodivergence, and major life transitions. I particularly enjoy working with clients who are highly introspective, tend to overthink or intellectualize their emotions, or have spent a long time feeling misunderstood by traditional approaches to therapy. I am also passionate about working with Spanish-speaking clients and families. I value culturally responsive care and recognize how language, culture, family, and lived experience shape the way we understand mental health and healing.

My approach is integrative, drawing from different evidence-based approaches depending on the individual and what they need. I most often incorporate Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)-informed strategies, mindfulness-based approaches, solution-focused techniques, motivational interviewing, supportive psychotherapy, and psychoeducation.

I also incorporate trauma-informed care and explore attachment, relationships, emotional regulation, behavioral patterns, and the connection between physical and emotional well-being when relevant. I use therapeutic models as a framework rather than trying to make the person in front of me fit neatly into one particular model.

Music playing while I’m cooking a really good meal, a great cup of coffee, writing something that finally says exactly what I was trying to say, and hearing my son laugh.

Understanding why you are the way you are is not the same thing as being destined to stay that way. Our behaviors and coping mechanisms usually make sense when we understand where they came from. Some of the things we criticize ourselves for today may have once helped us survive something difficult. Therapy isn’t about shaming those parts of ourselves away. It’s about understanding them, deciding what still serves us, and learning that we are allowed to choose differently now.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Google  
 
  
 
 
 Judy Dodds 
 
55 days ago
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. 
Felicia is wonderful. I'm looking forward to our next meeting.
  
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Google  
 
  
 
 
 Meagan Bowman 
 
64 days ago
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. 
Felicia is amazing! I was so nervous about my first ever therapy appt. The moment she spoke to me I felt instantly at ease. She listens and never judges. I feel heard and understood. She is a god send
  
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Google  
 
  
 
 
 Tina Sonney 
 
90 days ago
 
 
 Trustindex verifies that the original source of the review is Google. 
Felicia is absolutely amazing! So attentive and thorough! I am super impressed with her expertise! Also very friendly and welcoming. I would absolutely recomend her to anyone with a child!