Hi, I’m Ksenia.
Welcome to Root & Return Therapy.
Hello!Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Certified Brainspotter, and fellow human passionate about helping you unburden old survival patterns and return to your authentic self.
If you’ve spent years analyzing your story, checking every box of success, or trying to talk yourself out of high alert, I want you to know something fundamental: You are not broken.
So many of us carry survival strategies that were necessary for a past season of our lives—masking executive dysfunction, over-functioning, perfectionism, or carrying chronic hyper-vigilance. But when those strategies follow us into adulthood, they leave us feeling burnt out, disconnected, and homesick inside our own skin.
My passion is helping high-achievers, neurodivergent adults, and couples stop just managing their lives and start truly living them. We go beneath the talk-therapy plateau to rewire your nervous system where stress lives, allowing you to unburden what was never yours to hold.
What it’s like to work with me
Therapy with me is collaborative, authentic, and grounded.
I don’t sit in silence nodding along, nor do I give generic advice.
Direct & Warm: I bring gentle candor, deep empathy, and a touch of humor into our sessions. I meet you as a whole person, not a diagnosis.
Somatic & Root-Level: We prioritize body awareness and Brainspotting over endless intellectual debate. We honor your nervous system's organic wisdom.
Neurodiversity-Affirming: You don't have to mask here. Bring your fidgets, your blankets, your pets, and your non-linear thought process.
In this space, all of you is welcome.
Credentials & specialized trainingLicensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW): CA #138685
Certified Brainspotter: Advanced clinical certification in deep somatic processing, accessing subcortical trauma, and rewiring nervous system patterns.
Gottman Method Relational Therapy: Completed Level 1 & Level 2 Clinical Training for evidence-based couples assessment and intervention
Neurodiversity-Affirming Care: Specialized clinical focus on adult ADHD, Autism, and High Sensitivity
Integrative Frameworks: Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness & Somatic Awareness, and Spiritual Integration
When I am not in the therapy room
Based in South Lake Tahoe, I draw endless grounding and inspiration from the natural world. I am a mom to one human child and one rambunctious dog, both of whom keep me rooted in the present moment.
I love to move my body through yoga, trail running, hiking, and whatever other movement feels nourishing on any given day. On quiet evenings, you’ll usually find me enjoying a good sour beer, satisfying my crazy sweet tooth, or enjoying slower moments with my family and friends.
Just like the clients I support, I am a fellow human on the path—practicing every single day to root into gratitude, align with my most value-based actions, and find micro-moments of joy and glimmers in everyday life.