Sanaya Katrak, LMHC

Sanaya sees therapy as a way for people to grow in awareness of themselves and how they relate to others through the relationship built with their therapist. Working with individuals, couples, and families on issues including relationship struggles, life transitions (including perinatal mental health), anxiety, OCD, and trauma, she provides a space for people to come to know themselves in a more intimate way. She believes in making room for how our identities impact our experience in the world, viewing therapy as a tool to not just treat symptoms, but bring insight into how broader systems shape the experiences that inform our struggles. 

With Sanaya, you can expect a collaborative approach that meets you where you are, while gently challenging and supporting you to work through the discomfort that comes with exploring heavy and painful themes in therapy. Sanaya incorporates insight-oriented psychodynamic therapy, narrative approaches, and emotion-focused therapy, with tools from acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) based on individual client goals and needs. For couples, Sanaya is a good fit for those who find themselves avoiding conflict and withdrawing from each other, co-creating a pace and environment that is supportive of vulnerability and building an ease with communication. Sanaya also takes joy in the shared language she builds with clients, offering playfulness and creativity in the journey towards better emotional health and stronger relationships.

As a South Asian person, Sanaya has seen how a limited focus on diagnosis and symptoms can be inapplicable to the diversity of people, relationships, and family dynamics that come up in therapy. She believes that symptoms are culturally defined and understands unhelpful thoughts, patterns, and behaviors as responses to a person’s experiences and their role in various systems, such as their family of origin and community in which they live.

Graduating from Teachers College, Columbia University with a Masters in Mental Health Counseling, Sanaya leans on her rigorous training to provide the best care for her clients. She previously worked at a group practice with adolescents, adult individuals, and couples through a broadly psychodynamic lens. Her tolerance for discomfort and centering of warmth and compassion in hard moments has also been influenced by her prior work in animal rescue and welfare. Sanaya deeply values growth and change in herself, both as a person and therapist, and brings this philosophy to her work with clients. She is driven by an innate curiosity to know clients on a deep level and believes there is always more to learn. 

Therapy Specialties

Couples therapy | Relationship difficulties | Anxiety | Life transitions

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