Rhonda Heldt

Welcome. I am Dr. Rhonda Heldt, a licensed clinical psychologist in CA with 30+ years in the field. I specialize in addiction, trauma & EMDR, though welcome a range of adult clients struggling with anxiety, depression, and life challenges.

My approach

I am a solution-focused therapist, emphasizing practical, employable strategies for managing a wide range of mental health struggles.

My focus

I work extensively in addiction, trauma, and mood disorders; I work with adults and couples.

My communication style

I tend towards the kind & compassionate, yet direct style of engagement.

My journey to mental healthcare

I am a native Midwesterner and had a keen desire to work in health care from a young age. I started my career in diagnostics & testing, child welfare, and substance abuse, followed by a decade in the correctional setting, working with severely mentally ill individuals. The latter part of my career has emphasized adults and trauma, with particular awareness of the increased stressors from COVID, environmental changes, and the ever-present stressors of our complicated world.

My goals for you

I approach goal setting collaboratively, respecting the patient as the primary expert of their own experience. I am informed by many decades in the field, and many experiences, from running crisis units & working in psychiatric emergency rooms to residential treatment and private practice, thus I take a confident, but not authoritarian, approach to my work.

My first session with you

First sessions are typically about rapport building, understanding your therapeutic inquiry, and establishing a positive working relationship.