Christina Lucey-Ventura
MA, LMFT
CA License #132522
Meet Christina
Artist.
Anthropologist.
Therapist.
Christina Lucey-Ventura came to psychotherapy through an unconventional path — one that has made her a richer, more attuned clinician. Before training as a therapist, she spent years as a working artist and pursued graduate study in anthropology, developing a deep curiosity about human experience, culture, and the stories we tell ourselves.
That background lives in her practice. She brings an artist's sensitivity to the nuances of inner life, and an anthropologist's respect for the complexity of each person's world. Therapy with Christina is collaborative, unhurried, and genuinely curious — a space where you are met exactly as you are.
The Path Here
A different kind of training
Christina holds a Master of Arts degree and is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California (License #132522). Her clinical training is grounded in psychodynamic and attachment-based frameworks, with specialized training in EMDR — a powerful, evidence-based approach to trauma processing.
Her years as an artist gave her an intimate understanding of the creative psyche — the vulnerability of making work, the particular anxieties of the artistic life, the way identity and expression are so deeply intertwined. She brings that understanding to her work with artists, musicians, writers, and other creatives who find that traditional therapy doesn't quite speak their language.
Her background in anthropology deepened her appreciation for the ways culture, family systems, and social context shape who we become. She holds a strong commitment to culturally responsive, LGBTQIA+ affirming care — recognizing that healing happens within a larger world that must be understood, not ignored.
She founded Ananda Therapy — "ananda" meaning bliss or joy in Sanskrit — with a vision of a practice that honors the full complexity of human experience, and holds space for genuine transformation.
The Name
"Ananda — the Sanskrit word for bliss, joy, and the deepest happiness."
The name reflects a belief that joy is not a luxury or a destination — it is a birthright, and one that trauma and pain can temporarily obscure. The work of therapy is, in part, the work of finding your way back to it.
The Approach
How we work together
Trauma-Informed
Every aspect of the work is shaped by an understanding of how trauma lives in the body and mind — and how healing happens at its own pace.
Attachment-Based
Our earliest relationships shape how we move through the world. Therapy here explores those patterns with curiosity and compassion.
Psychodynamic
Looking beneath the surface — at the unconscious patterns, defenses, and longings that quietly drive our lives.
Non-Judgmental
A genuinely open, accepting space. There is nothing you can bring here that will be met with anything other than care.
Let's work together
A free 15-minute consultation is the first step — a chance to connect, ask questions, and see if it feels like the right fit.