Dr Krista De Castella

I’ve long been intrigued by the things we believe and how they can shape our experience — whether that’s beliefs about ourselves and others, or even the world and our place in it. I completed a PhD in Psychology at the Australian National University and a Master’s in Clinical Psychology at San Francisco State University. While living in the U.S. I also spent two years as a visiting researcher in Stanford’s Clinically Applied Affective Neuroscience Lab (CAAN) researching the implications of mindfulness meditation for anxiety disorders and emotion regulation. 

In my clinical work, I’ve taught meditation and mindfulness (MBSR) to individuals and groups; provided nature-based therapy for neurodiverse kids; and worked with adolescents, couples and adults in various settings in San Francisco. I’m primarily influenced by psychodynamic, humanistic and attachment theory frameworks in this work and believe strongly in the importance of a warm, open and authentic therapeutic relationship.  

Outside of clinical work, I’m an avid martial arts practitioner and have spent over a decade training in the Japanese Soto Zen meditation tradition in which I am an ordained Zen priest. I have a personal interest in Buddhist and transpersonal psychology, ethics, and expanded states of consciousness.