Gabrielle Pascual, MMFT, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT 125884)
Child & Adolescent Specialty Practice (CASP) Clinician & Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) Clinician
Pronouns: She / Her / Hers
Welcome! Thank you for being here. I am a licensed marriage and family therapist through the Institute’s Child and Adolescent Specialty Program (CASP) and the Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) Team. I am passionate about helping our adolescents express themselves and grow, and I deeply care about fostering their development so they can be a version of themselves that they are most proud of!
When working with kids and teens, I value building trust and creating a safe space so they can explore and understand themselves better. Therapy isn’t a one-size-fits-all, so I use a variety of interventions and techniques that best suit their individual needs. I assist them by targeting areas for personal growth such as increasing an understanding of their emotions, improving communication skills, and building healthier relationships with others. I also value working with my clients’ families to support positive relationships and provide sustainable changes outside of the therapy room. Therapy is an opportunity to collaborate with children and teens in expanding their insights of themselves and building skills they need to improve their lives. I recognize that therapy isn’t easy, and I commit to being with our youth as we navigate along their journeys.
As a Filipino-American woman, I recognize the importance of understanding each of my client’s cultural experiences as they explore their own sense of self. I assist my clients in navigating their multicultural identities – including how they relate to their families and how they connect to their communities. I feel deeply rooted in my cultural identities, so it has been important to me to feel understood in my unique experiences. I strive to ensure the kids and teens I work with feel understood in their diverse experiences as well.
As a child, I wish I had the skills to help me understand my emotions and experiences. As a therapist, I strive to help my clients feel understood and heard. I am grateful that my experience working with adolescents has allowed me to witness their immense resiliency as they move through life. This has inspired me to continue working with our youth so they can sustain positive growth and be the bright future for our world.
Specialties:
I provide support for growth in the following areas:
- Anxiety
- Emotion Regulation
- Friendship/Relationship challenges
- Self-esteem/Self-compassion
- Perfectionism
- Understanding one’s identity
- Issues regarding cultural identity and stress
- Trauma
- Attachment wounds
Additional Information about my Specialties:
My clinical experience includes providing individual therapy to elementary and middle school students as well as female, transgender, and non-binary foster care and probation youth ages 13 to 18. I have also facilitated group therapy for youth and family therapy for youth and their families. Many of my clients have come from diverse backgrounds and have lived in underserved and low-income communities.
I have worked with adolescents who have experienced depression, anxiety, trauma, PTSD, attachment wounds, cultural stress, difficulty in maintaining relationships, self-injurious behaviors, and suicidal ideation. I have provided therapy in school-based, home-based, residential care-based, and office-based settings.
I utilize a culturally-sensitive and multidimensional approach to therapy, incorporating techniques from Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, attachment-based, narrative, and person-centered approaches. I see therapy as a place to collaborate with my clients – to help them better understand themselves and work towards the best version of themselves.
Presentations and Workshops:
- G.I.R.L.S. Group based off of Girls in Real Life Situations (G.I.R.L.S.) by Julia V. Taylor: for 6th grade girls in a school setting
- Strategies for Motivation: for female and gender-expanding youth ages 13 to 18 in residential care
- Coping Skills Group: for female and gender-expanding youth ages 13 to 18 in residential care
Prior Experience:
- Victor Treatment Centers, Short-Term Residential Treatment Program (STRTP)
- Partnerships to Uplift Communities (PUC)
- Veteran’s Affairs West Los Angeles/UCLA Clinical Research – The Green Lab
Education:
- Master of Marriage and Family Therapy, University of Southern California
- Bachelor of Science in Psychobiology, University of California, Los Angeles
Mission: My mission is to help our youth feel understood and heard to better understand themselves and to help their families provide the support they need. I want our youth to feel empowered to advocate for themselves and feel safe in exploring their identities, thoughts, and emotions so they can take on the world!
Email: GPascual@IFGD.care
Phone: 626-585-8075 ext. 124
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