- 28 years experience
- LCSW in California
- Compassionate listening
About Karena
Karena Franses is an LCSW with 28 years of clinical experience in California. She draws on decades of work in both hospital and independent-practice settings to help people who are struggling with addiction, mood concerns, relationship stress, and issues around self esteem. Her approach is grounded in compassion and a steady, calm presence.
Her early career included long-term work as a social work supervisor in an outpatient HIV clinic. There she supported people facing severe addiction, trauma, depression, and the effects of poverty and discrimination. Later she ran a small independent practice where she saw individuals and couples for relationship problems, body image concerns, self-harm, and trauma.
Karena brings a Buddhist-informed perspective to her work and maintains a daily meditation practice. That outlook shapes how she listens and responds, favoring kindness, humility, and patience in sessions. She believes people already have the seeds of healing inside them.
Clinically, she uses Motivational Interviewing to help people find momentum for change. She also draws on psychodynamic ideas to look at patterns that repeat in relationships and emotion. These methods are used to help people better understand what keeps them stuck.
Clients can expect a collaborative, nonjudgmental space to talk through grief, stress, anxiety, intimacy-related issues, and questions about life purpose. Karena emphasizes practical steps alongside deeper reflection to reduce suffering and build healthier patterns.
If a reader wants to explore therapy, she suggests starting with a short conversation to see whether her style matches the person’s needs and goals.
Her early career included long-term work as a social work supervisor in an outpatient HIV clinic. There she supported people facing severe addiction, trauma, depression, and the effects of poverty and discrimination. Later she ran a small independent practice where she saw individuals and couples for relationship problems, body image concerns, self-harm, and trauma.
Karena brings a Buddhist-informed perspective to her work and maintains a daily meditation practice. That outlook shapes how she listens and responds, favoring kindness, humility, and patience in sessions. She believes people already have the seeds of healing inside them.
Clinically, she uses Motivational Interviewing to help people find momentum for change. She also draws on psychodynamic ideas to look at patterns that repeat in relationships and emotion. These methods are used to help people better understand what keeps them stuck.
Clients can expect a collaborative, nonjudgmental space to talk through grief, stress, anxiety, intimacy-related issues, and questions about life purpose. Karena emphasizes practical steps alongside deeper reflection to reduce suffering and build healthier patterns.
If a reader wants to explore therapy, she suggests starting with a short conversation to see whether her style matches the person’s needs and goals.