TODAY IS YOUR DAY TO THRIVE

It’s possible to grow through the hard things you go through

Our Mission

Here at Thrive Therapy we believe that every person deserves to thrive, to heal and to grow despite what you've lived through, experienced or are currently navigating.

Image features a small leafy plant in a white pot next to a tissue box on a coffee table.

To thrive means: to grow through the hard things we go through


and when paired with therapy, we can’t imagine a better way to describe the heart, grit, and tenacity it takes to do the brave work of looking inward, gently and kindly unlearn, heal and hold space for the lived experiences you’ve journeyed through or are currently navigating.

“Every individual has the ability to thrive in life and therapy is a powerful vessel in facilitating this growth.”

Meet the team at Thrive Therapy

We are a group private practice based in downtown Santa Barbara, California + treating clients throughout the state of California through telehealth. We offer warm, compassionate, evidence based therapy and person centered support to individuals and groups.


  • Practice Owner and Clinical Director

    Claire is passionate about empowering women in their mental health, whether journeying through pregnancy, postpartum, eating disorders, anxiety, depression, grief or life transitions.

    Areas of focus: perinatal mental health (all things pregnancy + postpartum), eating disorders, body image, grief and trauma. Claire is EMDR trained and a perinatal mental health certified provider through Postpartum Support International.

  • Associate Marriage and Family Therapist #132958 Under the Clinical Supervision of Claire Blakey, LMFT #119518

    Becca’s approach is warm, collaborative, and tailored to your unique strengths and goals. I’ll support you with compassion while also challenging you to push past the discomfort of growth, with the goal of achieving greater connection, joy, and purpose. Through a combined approach of mindfulness-based, cognitive behavioral, and psychodynamic frameworks, I’ll help you challenge lifelong patterns, address old wounds and traumas, and create a deeper and more compassionate sense of self.

    Areas of interest: Pregnant and postpartum women, NICU parents, trauma, PTSD and high achieving perfectionists processing anxiety.

    EMDR trained and perinatal certification in process with Postpartum Support International.

Annie Dreese smiles brightly for the camera. Learn about therapy in Santa Barbara and the support of a California therapist
  • Associate Marriage and Family Therapist #137337, Under the Clinical Supervision of Claire Blakey, LMFT #119518

    Annie is passionate about empowering parents in early parenting, leaning from her experience in the parent infant unit in San Francisco, years of teaching as an educator, and paired with her advanced training in parent child interaction therapy.

    Areas of interest: Pregnancy postpartum mental health, birth challenges, early childhood and play based sessions with kids and parenting support for parents wanting to deepen their skills around attachment and parenting young children.

    EMDR and perinatal certification in process with Postpartum Support International.

Let’s Thrive—Together

  • Thrive holds significant meaning for us. To thrive means: to grow through the hard things we go through. And when paired with therapy, we can’t imagine a better way to describe the heart, grit and tenacity it takes to do the brave work of looking inward, gently and kindly unlearn, heal and hold space for the lived experiences we’ve journeyed through.

    For many, therapy is the first space where certain stories, memories or experiences are spoken. Therapy can be a soft and safe place to land. A listening ear. A gentle reflection that often mirrors what we have shared and validates the inner child and our sacred lived experiences.

    Therapy can be a healing vessel, a place to use our voice, a place to be held, seen and celebrated.

    If thriving is growing through the hard things you go through and blooming despite adversity. What is the step after that?

    Our Founder Claire Blakey likes to share how we all have a story of thrive.

    For some, it’s thriving through our childhoods, traumas and advertisty.

    For others, it’s a complicated eating disorder that we actively choose to heal from.

    For others, it’s surviving a traumatic birth or breaking generational patterns of trauma passed down our family lineage.

    And for others, it’s courageously choosing sobriety or journeying and holding space for our mental health.

    On the other side of thrive is flourish. Once we grow through the hard things we grow through, we cultivate the soil for our futures and this leads to a flourishing life. To flourish means to: create an ideal environment so you can prosper and grow.

    If you think of thrive as the soil that is cultivated, the weeds we might dig out, the seeds we might plan. Flourish on the other side of thrive. It’s the hope. It’s the good that comes from ashes. It’s the crops that after much tending, nurturing and cultivating….grows!

    Our hope here at Thrive Therapy is that therapy becomes a vessel to healing and growth. That through the sacredness of holding space for therapy, for your healing and your humanness, that not only do you t h r I v e — but you flourish too.

  • Beginning therapy can feel nerve-racking. Sometimes the very act of reaching out, typing up an email or having an initial phone consultation can feel daunting and terrifying. But it doesn’t have to be. Know when you call Thrive Therapy, our team is here to welcome you with open arms, unconditional empathy and confidentiality.

    In fact, our team believes that even therapists should see a therapist. We are all human and have lived experiences that deserve tending, healing and nourishing.

    We get it. We’ve been there. We still go there when we reach out for help too. And your humanness is welcome here.

    Your story matters. Your experiences matter. And we want to provide support you need or connect you to someone else who can.

    For some, support might come through a team member or therapist at Thrive Therapy, but even if we aren’t the right fit, we will happily provide referrals, resources and next steps for you to get the support you need.

    Calling is the first step.

    And!? You have nothing to lose. We offer a complimentary 20 minute consultation where you can ask us all the questions, share whatever feels comfortable and get a sense if our team will be a good fit for you.

  • So, you made it through the initial email inquiry, had a 20 minute consultation and now have an appointment scheduled with one of our therapists. What can you expect in the first session or two?

    We like to describe it as a continuation of our consultation. We often share how it’s hard to open up about the harder parts of life if your therapist doesn’t know the ordinary details. Like…if you go to school, where you work, about your partner, your dog and the friends you spend time with. A lot of the first session or two is building a foundation of history, whether that be the history of your life and what brought you to this point in your career or journey. Or….whether it be what your life looks like on a day to day basis. We want to hear about the boss that’s annoying, the coworkers you love spending time with or the breakup you are still processing. All of those things matter. And all of those things impact your mental health.

    Of course, as therapists, we will ask other questions too — we’ll get a feel for your history of mental health, if you’ve taken or are currently on medication, how recent you visited your doctor, any other medical conditions that might impact your mental health or experiences that have shaped you.

    And as always, we go at your pace. For many therapy is the long game, not a sprint. Meaning…there is no deadline or rush (unless of course, you are eager and want to dive right in). But truly, you get to lead the pace, the path we journey down and we are right there besides you cheering you on, providing a compass and nourishment…and most importantly, helping you read the map! But you are the leader. We are here to support, cheer you on and be there every step of the way.

    So what are you waiting for!? Are you ready!?

We Offer a Space to Cultivate Healing and Support for…

Pregnancy

Pregnancy brings up its own set of feelings, challenges and excitement. For many it can cultivate an opportunity to do deep healing work and bring up historical wounds from our families of origin. It can also become a source of stress, anxiety or conflict in relationships with our partners.

Whether you are beginning your trying to conceive (ttc) journey, navigating grief and loss from a recent miscarriage, or a few weeks away from your due date, having a therapist support in that journey can be helpful as you navigate the pregnancy season and build a team of providers to join your “team” in preparation for this chapter of life. For many it’s not just preparing for the birth of a baby but also, the birth of a new stage of life - the birth of becoming a mother or parent.

And just as you might navigate physical changes and uncertainties, your mental health and journey is also worth holding space and gently exploring.

Postpartum

Matresence is a term coined for the physiological, emotional and transformational season of becoming a mother - often compared to the awkwardness and difficulty of the season adolescents navigate through puberty. In the same way, becoming a parent can induce similar growing pains of navigating a new body, unfamiliar territory and bring up a host of mental health challenges. Seeing a therapist during this time (individually or with your partner) can be extremely healing and helpful as you navigate a new chapter filled with joys, difficulties and adjustments.

As you wade through the waters of postpartum and as the water often can feel consuming, terrifying and overwhelming, a therapist can support in cultivating skills, assessing for postpartum mood and anxiety disorders (PMADS) and provide preventative and evidence based care, concern and support.

Everyday life

We believe that everyone could benefit from seeing a therapist. Having someone in your corner that is cheering you on, well-versed in mental health, able to diagnose, treat and provide tangible tools and psychoeducation for life’s challenges is a gift.

It is our joy and honor to hold space for the challenging and rewarding moments of life: whether you are navigating life transitions: adjusting to college or a new town, navigating a break up, are newly engaged, journeying through turbulence in your relationships, wading in newfound parenthood, or unraveling your relationship with your own childhood as you parent and raise your littles — we are here for you.

Feeling particularly stuck and unable to move past a thought, belief or memory? EMDR (Eye movement desensitization reprocessing) could be a valuable tool we could pair with your weekly sessions to support or we could connect you with a group therapy offering that might compliment your treatment.

Your story matters. Your lived experiences are worth tending to and holding gently. We would be honored to journey with you through your healing process and provide a safe place for you to process and honor all you are navigating.

“Our wounds are often the openings into the best and most beautiful parts of us.”

— David Rico


Ready to take the next step?

Schedule a complimentary 20-minute phone or video consultation to see if working together is the right fit for you.

Read Our latest Blog Posts

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