Kristina "Kris" Yates

Kristina "Kris" Yates is a licensed marriage and family therapist who focuses on helping people manage stress, anxiety, trauma, and life transitions. She works with clients who are navigating LGBT concerns, compassion fatigue, and the everyday strain of change. Kris emphasizes that each person knows their own story and brings strengths to the work.

She has 20 years of professional experience practicing in California as an LMFT. In sessions she listens first and follows the client’s lead, aiming to make therapy feel like a collaborative conversation rather than a lecture. Kris helps clients name what’s hard and test small changes that can improve daily life.

Kris uses a client-centered approach that prioritizes the client's experience and pace. That means she offers a supportive, nonjudgmental space where people can talk through abandonment, attachment, body image, or communication problems. She also addresses caregiver stress, chronic illness and pain, and issues tied to mood and financial strain.

People often bring trauma, post-traumatic stress, or difficult relationship endings to therapy, and Kris helps them sort through those experiences step by step. She also supports those coping with isolation, guilt, and shame. Her work pays attention to multicultural concerns and how identity shapes stress and healing.

To begin, clients follow a short matching questionnaire and schedule sessions based on therapist availability. Kris aims to help people find practical steps that fit their life and values.

Client-centered approaches and online care

Client-centered therapy focuses on the person’s own experience. The therapist offers warm, nonjudgmental listening and reflects what the client shares. This approach helps when someone needs space to make sense of trauma, anxiety, or identity-related stress without feeling pushed into a path they don’t want.

The emphasis is on understanding each person’s priorities and strengths. Therapy often involves naming patterns, testing small changes, and deciding together what feels useful. That collaborative process can help with relationship concerns, body image, caregiver strain, and persistent worry.

Finding the right approach is part of the work. The therapist will help figure out which methods and pace fit your needs, goals, and preferences. Clients and therapist set goals together and adjust the plan as things change.

Session formats are not specified in the provided biography, so confirm current options before booking. Online therapy can make it easier to fit appointments into busy days, reduce travel time, or allow shorter check-ins when schedules are tight. It can also let people take part from different locations while keeping the focus on practical steps and steady progress.