About Karina

What to Expect – The First Session

I’m Karina Santillo, founder of Grounded Mind. I’m a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist based in Westlake Village, CA with a practice focused on individual therapy for adults.

My main areas of focus are anxiety and emotional overwhelm, relationships and self-trust, trauma processing through EMDR, and bipolar disorder support.

Call me directly. We'll start there.

Why I Do This Work

I enjoy helping people. That sounds simple, and it is, but it’s also the most honest answer I can give.

When I see a client start to feel better, when sleep returns, when reactivity softens, when self-trust comes back online, that’s the part of this work I love most.

I also have personal experience with mental illness through a family member. That experience shapes how I work, and it’s part of why I sit comfortably with diagnoses some therapists prefer to refer out, including bipolar disorder. I know how the condition affects the people who have it, and I know how it affects the people who love them.

How I Think About Therapy

Therapy

My approach is structured and forward-focused.

I work with two main modalities. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) helps you understand and interrupt the thought and behavior patterns running your day right now. EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) helps your brain process older experiences that are still driving your present reactions.

I also think about the work as a triangle: mind, body, and soul. What you eat, how you sleep, how much you move, and how you regulate your nervous system all affect what we can do together in session. I’ll ask about those things because they’re part of how you heal.

You can read more about the method itself on the How Therapy Works page.

MY STYLE

Clients describe my style as steady and grounding.

I’m warm and nonjudgmental. I’m also active, direct, and engaged. I’ll challenge you when something needs to be challenged, and I’ll hold you accountable when that’s what the work needs.

What I want from the relationship is mutual respect. You should feel respected by me. I should feel respected by you. That’s the foundation that lets the harder work happen.

Credentials & Training

License:

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT), California LMFT License #103557

Education:

Bachelors Degree from UCLA, Masters Degree from Phillips Graduate Institute

EMDR certification:

EMDR Trained (Certification still in process)

Additional training and certifications:

Professional memberships:

Years in practice:

14

years in practice

Where I Practice

I see clients in person in Westlake Village, CA and via secure telehealth for clients located in California.

Ready to Talk?

If something here resonates, call me. We’ll start with one question: Tell me what’s going on. I’ll listen while you get it off your chest. If we’re a good match, we’ll begin.