SOUTH BAY · CHILD, ADOLESCENT, YOUNG ADULT, & FAMILY THERAPY

Therapy for kids, teens, young adults, and families.

Warm, evidence-based therapy for the emotional work of growing up. Anxiety, mood, identity, relationships, and the everyday weight that builds up when no one's helped you put it down.

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Meet Our Team

OUR APPROACH

Therapy that meets you where you are.

Therapy is a space to work through what's hard.

For some clients, that's anxiety that follows them into sleep, into friendships, into the small moments of the day. For others, it's a mood that's hard to name, a sense that something's off, or a family stuck in a pattern they can't seem to break. Whatever brought you here, the goal is the same: more tools, more clarity, more room to breathe.

Our therapy team works with children, adolescents, young adults, and families. We see clients navigating anxiety, depression, mood concerns, emotional regulation, self-esteem, identity, relationships, and the everyday weight of growing up. Sessions are warm, structured, and grounded in evidence-based approaches like cognitive behavioral therapy.

You don't need a referral, a diagnosis, or a completed evaluation to start. If something feels off, that's enough of a reason to reach out.

WHO WE WORK WITH

Who Might Benefit from Therapy at Mind by Design

Our therapists work with kids, teens, young adults, and families navigating a range of emotional and relational concerns. Some clients come to us with a specific challenge in mind. Others come because something feels off and they want help making sense of it.

Kids

Children carrying more than their bodies and brains know how to handle. That might look like meltdowns, withdrawal, big worries, or a new diagnosis they're trying to make sense of. Therapy gives them a space to feel understood and the skills to manage what comes next.

Teens

Adolescents navigating mood, identity, friendships, and the weight of becoming themselves. Some are struggling with anxiety or depression that's hard to talk about at home. Others want a space that's just theirs, with someone who isn't a parent or a teacher. Our work with teens is collaborative and respectful of the autonomy they're trying to build.

Young Adults

Eighteen through the mid-twenties is its own season. Bigger decisions, new independence, and emotional terrain that doesn't always have a roadmap. We work with young adults sorting through anxiety, mood, relationships, identity, and the transitions that come with this stage of life.

Families

Sometimes the most useful work happens with parents in the room, or with parents on their own. Family-focused sessions help everyone move in the same direction, whether that's working through a conflict pattern, adjusting after a diagnosis, or learning how to support a child without losing yourself in the process.

What We Help With

Therapy isn't one-size-fits-all. Below are some of the most common reasons families come to us. Each links to a closer look at how we approach that specific concern.

✔ Anxiety

Worry that's started to take up too much space, including the kind that shows up before school, before sleep, or before a hard conversation. Therapy helps clients name what they're feeling, understand what's driving it, and build tools to manage it day to day.

✔ Family Dynamics

Communication patterns, sibling conflict, parent-child tension, and the ripples of a recent diagnosis or transition. Family-focused work can include parents only, the child only, or both.

✔ Depression & Mood

Low mood, irritability, loss of interest, or a heaviness that's hard to shake. We help clients understand what's happening underneath and build a path back toward more of themselves.

✔ Teen & Young Adult Mental Health

Depression, anxiety, identity, and the full weight of these chapters. Our work prioritizes the client's voice, their pace, and their goals.

✔ ADHD-Related Support

The emotional side of ADHD: the frustration, the self-esteem hits, the feeling of always being one step behind. Therapy supports the inner experience that often goes unaddressed in academic support alone.

✔ Identity & Self-Esteem

Who am I, where do I fit, and what does it mean that I'm different from the people around me? Therapy gives kids, teens, and young adults a steady place to work through these questions.

Wondering If Your Child Could Use Someone to Talk To?

You don't need to wait for a crisis. If your child is carrying emotional weight related to school, learning, or how they see themselves, that's reason enough to reach out.

Talk With Our Team

Why Therapy at Mind by Design is Different

Most therapists who work with children don’t have access to a detailed picture of how that child’s brain processes information. Our team does.

When your child has been evaluated at Mind by Design, therapy is informed by the full cognitive, academic, and social-emotional profile. That means therapy isn’t built on guesswork. It’s built on data.

And when your child is also working with our executive function coaches, literacy specialists, speech-language pathologists, or academic support team, your therapist can coordinate with them so everyone understands what’s happening emotionally and how it connects to the rest of your child’s support.

What We Bring to The Room

When families come to us for therapy, they're usually not shopping for a practice. They're looking for the right person to sit across from their child. Here's what we think about, and what we try to bring to every relationship we build.

✔ Warmth before clinical anything

Before we talk about modalities or goals, we focus on connection. A child or teen won't do real work with someone they don't trust. Our therapists lead with the relationship and let the clinical work follow.

✔ Parents included when it helps

Some families benefit from parent guidance sessions. Some need family work with everyone in the room. Some just need their child to have a space that's theirs. We figure that out together, and we'll tell you what we think will help.

✔ Evidence-based, not by the book

We draw on cognitive behavioral therapy, parent guidance, and other evidence-based approaches. But we adapt to who's in front of us. The same anxiety doesn't look the same in two different teens, and the same family doesn't need the same conversation twice.

✔ Supervised by a licensed clinical psychologist

Our therapy team works under the supervision of Dr. Melissa Sorci, a licensed clinical psychologist with deep experience in this work. That structure means every clinical decision sits inside a system of training, oversight, and ongoing development.

✔ Pace matched to the client

Adolescents and young adults are working on autonomy. We respect that. Sessions move at the client's pace, and we give them room to lead the work that's theirs to lead.

✔ Goal-oriented, with check-ins along the way

Therapy should be going somewhere. We set goals early and revisit them on a regular cadence so the work stays purposeful and so you know what's changing and what isn't.

MEET OUR THERAPY TEAM

Therapy led by clinicians who specialize in the work.

Dr. Alexa Padilla, Ph.D.

Registered Psychological Assistant, supervised by Dr. Melissa Sorci, Licensed Clinical Psychologist PSY #23816

Dr. Alexa Padilla leads our therapy practice. She works with children, teens, young adults, and families navigating anxiety, depression, mood, and the everyday emotional work of growing up. Her approach is warm, structured, and grounded in evidence-based methods including cognitive behavioral therapy. She also has experience supporting parents directly.

If you're not sure whether Dr. Padilla is the right fit for your child or family, reach out anyway. The first conversation is a chance to figure that out together.

Read Dr. Padilla's full bio →

Common Questions About Therapy

We work with children, teens, young adults, and families. Our team has experience with clients from elementary school through young adulthood, and we work directly with parents.
No. You don't need a prior evaluation, a referral, or a formal diagnosis to start. If something feels off and you think therapy might help, that's enough of a reason to reach out.
It depends on what you're working on. Some clients meet a handful of times to get through a specific challenge. Others stay in therapy for several months or longer. Your therapist will check in regularly about what's working and whether anything should shift.
Yes, with the standard legal and ethical exceptions any therapist is required to follow. We'll walk through the specifics in your first session so you know exactly what's protected.
Yes. If your child also works with one of our evaluators, executive function coaches, speech-language therapists, or academic support specialists, your therapist can coordinate with that provider so everyone is moving in the same direction.
We are a private-pay practice and do not bill insurance directly. Therapy may be partially reimbursable depending on your plan. See our Billing and Insurance page for the current details on superbills, CPT codes, and reimbursement.

Ready to Talk?

If your child, your teen, or your family is carrying more than they should have to, our team can help lighten the load. The first step is a short conversation. You can fill out the form below or call or text us at (669) 282-2510.