About You, and About Us
We are a group of licensed therapists who are passionate about working with young adults (18 -33 years old). Our expertise is providing holistic counseling to overwhelming life transitions. We offer a compassionate approach, combined with dynamic collaboration to help you develop skills and tools to apply immediately to your life.
We accept new clients who have UC SHIP insurance or can pay out-of-pocket.
Kerena Saltzman
Kerena created 20’s Creating Connections to support 20-somethings navigating major life transitions. She gathered a group of highly skilled licensed therapists to provide holistic counseling to this emerging generation.
Kerena works with a limited number of clients per year. She specializes in working with transition related issues: first generation students, death of a loved one, break ups, illness, divorce, and graduating seniors' anxiety around what is next for them. She works with graduate students experiencing burn out, stress, and who are wanting to get more direction and clarity professionally. She is trained in EMDR.
Language: English
Kim Prohaska
Kim brings a direct, practical, and caring approach to working with clients. She specializes in working with anxiety, depression, PTSD, mood disorders, coping with immigration and first generation challenges, international students managing their academic life while navigating a new culture, members of the LBGTQ community, and young adults experiencing major life transitions. She works with graduate students struggling with overwhelm, trying to find balance between school and their personal lives, or with questions about career and what is next.
She has been trained in Forensic Social Work, DBT, CBT, Family Systems, Brief Therapy, TF-CBT, Attachment Therapy, Trauma based therapies and other evidence-based models. Utilizing a strengths-based developmental approach, her practice focuses on helping others achieve both short and long term goals.
Kim has practiced in a variety of settings including inpatient psychiatric, outpatient clinics, forensic assessments and private practice. Additionally, she has provided clinical supervision for both interns and those working towards licensure from The Citadel, MUSC, Tulane University, UCLA and San Jose State.
Kimberly Prohaska, LCSW, JD completed her MSW in 1995 at Rhode Island College and her Juris Doctor at Loyola University, New Orleans in 2003.
Language: English
Melissa Villalobos
Melissa Villalobos, LCSW, provides a safe and supportive environment to explore your feelings and concerns. Her goal is to help you live and maintain a fulfilling, healthy, authentic, balanced and meaningful life. She holds a degree in Psychology from UCSC and earned her Masters degree in Social Work from San Jose State. She has over 15 years in the mental health field and has worked with children, adolescents and adults to improve overall quality of life.
Melissa has worked in a variety of settings, including residential facilities, psychiatric hospitals, non-profit community agencies and government. She specializes in working with mood disorders, depression, anxiety and first-generation challenges. She works to provide each person with a tailored treatment plan using a blend of theoretical orientations.
Language: English, Spanish
Danielle Marinsik
Danielle provides a welcoming, non-judgmental space where you can be your authentic self and explore whatever challenges you may be facing. As there is no “one size fits all” approach to therapy, support will be tailored to empower you to make changes specific to your needs and goals. She will help highlight inherent strengths that can support you in navigating difficulties and fostering growth both within yourself and in your relationships with others.
Whether you are struggling with anxiety, depression, acculturation, first-generation experiences, forming healthy relationships, healing family trauma, or with areas of personal growth, she will offer a compassionate presence where your experiences can be heard, and together you can work toward positive changes in your life.
Danielle is a strengths-based, client-centered therapist who utilizes mindfulness. Her practice is informed by her experience and identity. She is the daughter of an immigrant, active in the LGBTQ+ community, and identifies as Latina and multiracial.
She received both her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and her Master’s in Counseling Psychology from Santa Clara University. Her previous experience includes supporting young children and families to foster their emotional understanding, resilience, and to develop healthy family relationships.
Language: English, Spanish
Dulce Ruatti
Dulce Ruatti is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who identifies as a Latina woman and immigrant, born and raised in Mexico City, Mexico. Her pronouns are She/Her/Hers.
She works with adults from all backgrounds, and has a passion for working with individuals struggling with issues around immigration and acculturation. She specializes in supporting individuals with anxiety, depression, PTSD and those who are experiencing significant emotional distress due to stress, acute illness, domestic violence, homelessness and trauma.
Dulce offers a compassionate, nonjudgmental, and safe space for individuals to learn how to form healthy relationships. She utilizes a strengths-based, client-centered, and holistic approach.
She is trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Motivational Interviewing, Solution Focused therapy, TF-CBT, Crisis Intervention and Conflict Resolution.
Her previous experience includes supporting individuals and families in the foster care system, residential facilities, psychiatric hospitals, nonprofit community agencies, and crisis intervention with law enforcement and hospitals.
She received her bachelor's degree in Social Work and her Master's degree in Social Work from Sacramento State University.
Language: English, Spanish
Edward Olvera
Edward Olvera provides strength-based and solution-focused assistance with an emphasis on:
- Assisting you in focusing your attention, inner strengths, and abilities on your present circumstances in order to address counterproductive thoughts and behaviors so you can realize a more satisfying, enriched, and desired future!
- Past experiences can carry an emotional charge that can be like a powerful “undertow”, however the goal is to learn to build new skills, strength, and focus to enhance or amplify your resilience, resourcefulness, and resolve to become your "Best You" living a lifestyle of your design and desire!
- The approach is intended to coach, guide, encourage, question, advocate and collaborate in order to help you achieve desired goals. "Partnering" with you emphasizes solutions to overcome patterns of behavior and thinking that are counterproductive, unsatisfying, or otherwise detrimental to your well-being, happiness, and life goals.
Edward brings more than four decades of experience and practice in a variety of settings including Crisis Mental Health, Emergency room settings, private practice, Telehealth, and UCSC CAPS.
Language: English