About
"I found I could say things with color and shapes that I could say any other way – things I had no words for" - Georgia O'Keefe
Mission & Vision
East Bay Art Therapy's mission is to expand creative arts therapy services in the San Francisco Bay Area and increase the public's knowledge of and exposure to the field of creative arts therapy by offering an array of creative arts therapy services to folks of all ages both in the private and public sector. East Bay Art Therapy's vision is a bay area where creative arts therapy is a commonly known term and an option for mental health services for people of all identities and backgrounds.
Core Values (C-IDEA)
Creativity
We believe creativity is inherent in every person. Our team brings innovation, imagination, and a creative lens into all that we do. We help clients reconnect with their own creative potential as a pathway to healing, expression, and growth.
Integrity
We are committed to strong ethical practices and to representing the field of art therapy with professionalism and care. Integrity informs how we make decisions, maintain boundaries, and support the well-being of every client and clinician.
Diversity & Decolonization
EBAT is intentional about building a diverse clinical team that reflects the identities and lived experiences of the communities we serve. We actively work to dismantle oppressive systems and embrace a decolonized approach to therapy, one that honors culture, identity, and community wisdom.
Empowerment
We empower clients by centering their agency, voice, and choice in the therapeutic process. We also believe in empowering our staff, creating an environment where clinicians feel valued, supported, and confident in their expertise.
Authenticity
We model authenticity as therapists so clients feel safe to express who they truly are. We honor lived experience just as much as education and clinical training, recognizing that authenticity strengthens connection, trust, and the therapeutic relationship.
About Art Therapy
An Example of an EBAT Art Therapy Session
Clip of Video by Chris Chang and Grace Galletti
East Bay Art Therapy owner, Tonia Herrero demonstrating an example art therapy directive.
This video is not of an actual client or client session. The "client" in the video is journalism student Grace Galletti.
Art Therapy involves talking with a therapist, but it is so much more. What may be difficult to express in words may become more accessible to you when you are given the opportunity to express yourself through a creative art form. By creating and processing your art with an art therapist, you can gain insight into yourself, build self-esteem and self awareness, and learn new coping skills for making positive change in your life.
Art therapy is an integrative approach to healing that helps clients connect their mind, body, and spirit by integrating visual art-making into therapy. An art therapy session may start off with a verbal check-in, followed by an art making directive, and concluding with reflection and verbal processing of the art. The amount of time spent in each phase varies depending on the client's needs and preference for that session. Some sessions may be purely verbal and others focused more on the creative process. Our Art Therapists can provide clients with a specific directive or prompt for art making that they feel may be helpful and other times clients may work in a more self-directed way. You are always the leader in your session!
Some art modalities available include; drawing, painting, clay, collage, mixed media, found object sculpture, sewing, digital art or photography. No experience or skill with art making is necessary to benefit from art therapy. We provide all art materials for in-person sessions.
Read more about art therapy on the American Art Therapy Association website: https://arttherapy.org/about-art-therapy/
Types of Creative Arts Therapy
Creative arts therapies is an umbrella term. “Creative arts therapies” is the umbrella term for the six therapies identified by the National Coalition of Creative Arts Therapies Associations (NCCATA, founded in 1979). These therapies are art therapy, dance/movement therapy, drama therapy, music therapy, poetry therapy, and psychodrama. Each type mixes talk therapy with its particular art modality. They will be referred to as CATs for the remainder of this article.
NCCATA describes creative arts therapists as “human service professionals who use arts modalities and creative processes for the purpose of ameliorating disability and illness and optimizing health and wellness. Treatment outcomes include, for example, improving communication and expression, and increasing physical, emotional, cognitive, and/or social functioning.” (NCCATA website, 2018)
Content courtesy of Krista Verrastro
Art Therapy
Art therapy is an integrative mental health and human services profession that enriches the lives of individuals, families, and communities through active art-making, creative process, applied psychological theory, and human experience within a psychotherapeutic relationship” (AATA website, 2018)
Dance + Movement Therapy
“The psychotherapeutic use of movement to further the emotional, cognitive, physical, and social integration of the individual” (ADTA website, 2018)
Drama Therapy
“Drama therapy is the intentional use of drama and/or theater processes to achieve therapeutic goals” (NADTA website, 2018)
Music Therapy
“Music therapy is the clinical and evidence-based use of music to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed an approved music therapy program” (AMTA website, 2018)
Poetry Therapy
“Promoting growth and healing through language, symbol, and story” (NAPT website, 2018)
Psychodrama
“Psychodrama employs guided dramatic action to examine problems and issues” (ASGPP website, 2018)
Payment + Fees
Individual & Family Therapy
Tonia Herrero (ATR-BC, ATCS):
$225 / 50 min session
Lauren Chester (ATR-BC):
$215 / 50 min sessionJess Matos (ATR):
$205 / 50min session
Sonja Wishard (LMFT, ATR-P):
$195 / 50 min session
$215 / 50 min session (Family Therapy)
Aurora Daigle (ATR-P):
$185 / 50 min session
Zaina Berger (AMFT, ATR-P):
$185 / 50 min sessionCoco Yu (AMFT, ATR-P):
$185 / 50 min session
$205 / 50 min session (Family Therapy)
Rebecca Valdivia (ATR-P):
$185 / 50 min session
$205 / 50 min session (Family Therapy)
Sara Umbro (Intern);
$75 / 50 min session
$35 / 50 min session for individuals receiving government assistance (such as Medi-Cal, EBT, or SSDI)
• Our therapists may be available for longer sessions if desired. Please inquire.
• Home-Based sessions may be available if the client's disability or health conditions prevent them from being able to have in-office sessions. This is on a case-by-case basis and depends on the location and our therapists' availability. Please inquire if you feel this may be appropriate for you or your child.
$850 for 10-weeks ($85 / 90 min group)
(Split up into 2 payments of $425)
See available Group offerings here
We require a card on file in our secure system for payment. This card can be any type of credit or debit card including Discover, Amex, HSA and FSA cards. If you would like to pay in-person by cash or check, let our intake coordinator know. You will still be required to put a card on file to charge for no shows or late cancellations. We have a 24-hour cancellation policy.
EBAT is an approved vendor of the Regional Center of the East Bay (RCEB) and we are in process of becoming vendors of San Andreas Regional Center (SARC). We can also do a curtesy vendorization with any regional center in CA. This means that we bill the regional center directly and you will pay nothing up front. To access our services through a regional center, in addition to scheduling a consultation with us, you must also speak to your regional center case manager to request services, as prior authorization is required before you can begin services under this program. We also have service agreements with some Self Determination Program (SDP) Financial Management Services (FMS) and are willing to start service agreements with any others.
We are not paneled with any insurance companies so we do not bill insurance directly. If you have out of network benefits, we can provide you with monthly superbills (provided after services are rendered) that you can submit to your insurance company for reimbursement. We cannot guarantee that you will be reimbursed as not all insurance companies reimburse for art therapy. It is up to you to check with your insurance company.
Off-Site Creative Arts Therapy Groups
Up to 10 participants
Includes all materials/supplies (in-person)
Virtual options available
Off-Site Creative Arts Therapy Workshops, Professional Development, & Workplace Wellness
10+ Participants
Includes all materials/supplies (in-person)
Virtual options available
Specialties and Supported Issues
ADHD / Adoption / Anxiety + Panic Attacks / Autism / BIPOC & Multicultural Identities / Bipolar Disorders / Body Image Issues / Burn Out / Chronic Pain + Illness / Codependency / Creative Blocks / Depression / Developmental + Intellectual Disabilities / Immigrants / Dissociation & DID / Eating Disorders + Disordered Eating / Family Issues + Conflict / Frontline Workers / Grief + Loss / LGBTQIA+ / Life Transitions / Oppositional Defiance / Parenting / Personality Disorders / Pregnancy, Post-Partum & Fertility / Psychosis / Schizophrenia / Schizoaffective Disorder / Relationship Issues / School Stress / Self Esteem Issues / Self-Harm / Substance Use / Suicidal Ideation / Sexual Abuse + Assault / TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) / Trauma (PTSD / CTPSD/ Intergenerational Trauma / Vicarious Trauma) / Veterans