Adult Psychotherapy for Anxiety and Depression | 40+ Years of Trusted Care in Santa Monica
Feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or emotionally exhausted? Dr. Sally Hackman, with years of experience, gives you a safe, judgment-free space to finally set it down and begin to heal. Leave a message, and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours.
100% Risk Free Visit | First visit is free if you choose not to continue.
#1 | Top-Rated Therapist in Santa Monica
What Life Could Feel Like With the Right Support
Over 40 million adults deal with anxiety every year, and most of them have gotten very good at hiding it. You laugh on cue, say “I’m fine” when asked, and wonder why nothing actually reaches you anymore. The sadness sits so deep that you’ve stopped trying to explain it to anyone.
Dr. Sally Hackman helps you feel the difference again; gently, at your own pace, without ever being rushed. She has helped Santa Monica adults, individuals navigating relationship difficulties, teens, and children unhook from old patterns and start making choices that actually feel like their own.
Her approach to adult psychotherapy adapts to you, not the other way around. You work with a therapist who understands because real healing doesn’t come from advice. It comes from finally being heard.
Complete Adult Psychotherapy Services
Whatever You’re Carrying, There’s Support for It Here.
ANXIETY TREATMENT
Some days feel heavier than others, and you wonder if anyone sees what you’re carrying. Dr. Sally does, and she works with you to understand what’s driving that weight so you can start feeling like yourself again.
SOCIAL ANXIETY TREATMENT
When you pull back from people who matter, your world gets smaller and lonelier than it should be. She helps you understand what’s behind the discomfort, where it began, and how to move past it so you can show up for your life again.
GRIEF AND LOSS THERAPY
There’s no timeline and no right way to grieve, and that’s something Dr. Sally understands deeply. She creates space for whatever you’re carrying and stays beside you for as long as the process takes.
THERAPY FOR RELATIONSHIP DIFFICULTIES
Love gets buried under stress and words left unsaid. Many individuals and couples across Santa Monica have trusted Dr. Sally to help them work through it. She clears away what’s blocking the connection and helps people remember why the relationship matters.
LGBTQ+ THERAPY
Identity, relationships, and life experience look different for everyone in the LGBTQ+ community, and the support you receive should reflect that. Dr. Sally offers a space to speak openly about identity, relationships, and whatever you’re carrying, entirely on your own terms.
FAMILY THERAPY FOR COPING WITH MENTAL ILLNESS
When a loved one is living with mental illness, nobody knows how to talk about it. Dr. Sally guides families through that weight with honest conversation, helping everyone support each other without losing themselves.
COPING WITH ILLNESS
The emotional weight of a diagnosis can feel as heavy as the illness itself, and what medicine can’t reach, she can. She gives you a space to feel everything you’ve been carrying, whether the illness is your own or someone you love.
LIFE TRANSITIONS THERAPY
Change is supposed to be exciting, but sometimes it just feels overwhelming, and everything you thought you knew about yourself shifts. Right there in that uncertainty, she meets you and helps you see the next chapter clearly.
WORK AND CAREER ISSUES
If your teen or child is struggling, Dr. Sally offers the same compassionate care for younger hearts, too.
One Conversation Is All It Takes to Start Feeling Different.
Fill out the form below, and she will personally respond within 24 hours.
This Is What Healing Actually Looks Like Here
- Finally understand what’s been driving your anxiety and depression
- Stop repeating the same patterns in relationships and at work
- Learn to set boundaries without guilt
- Process grief, loss, and trauma in a safe and confidential space
- Rebuild trust in yourself and your decisions
- Improve the way you communicate with the people who matter most
- Handle life transitions and career changes with confidence
- Walk away with tools and self-awareness that last a lifetime
What to Expect When You Reach Out
Step 1: Reach Out
Call (747) 243-4897 or fill out the form on this page. Dr. Sally will personally respond within 24 hours to schedule your first session.
Step 2: Your First Session
This is your space to share what’s been weighing on you. Dr. Sally listens, asks the right questions, and begins to understand what’s really going on beneath the surface. If you decide not to return for a second session, you won’t be charged for the initial visit.
Step 3: Your Personalized Plan
Based on what she learns about you, Dr. Sally builds a plan that fits your life, your pace, and your goals. She draws from psychoanalytic insight, attachment theory, cognitive behavioral techniques, and relational theories, depending on what you need.
Step 4: Ongoing Sessions
Healing doesn’t happen in one conversation, but it starts in one. Sessions are available in person at her Santa Monica office or via Zoom, Monday through Friday, 9 am to 7:30 pm.
Hope Is Possible They're Living Examples
I lived with social anxiety for more than 10 years. It was absolute hell. I was terrified of what people thought of me, and it controlled every decision I made. Thanks to Dr. Sally Hackman and her methods, I finally learned to stop being afraid. She gave me my confidence back.
After almost twenty years of marriage, I didn’t think my relationship with my wife could recover. Everything I said felt like an insult to her. With last hopes, we visited Dr. Sally Hackman. She helped us realize we can only be happy when we’re truly together. She saved our marriage.
When I lost my mom, I didn’t know how to function. I smiled at work and cried alone at night. Dr. Sally Hackman gave me a safe space to grieve without judgment. She helped me understand that healing doesn’t mean forgetting. I finally feel like I can breathe again.
Grief hit me harder than I ever expected. I couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep, couldn’t see a future. Dr. Sally Hackman never rushed me. She walked beside me at my own pace and helped me find meaning again. I’m not the same person I was. I’m stronger.
The Credentials and Care Behind Every Session
Choosing a therapist is one of the most personal decisions you’ll ever make. Here’s why adults across Santa Monica keep choosing her.
- PhD in Clinical Child Psychology
- Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT #29541)
- Advanced psychoanalytic psychotherapy training
- Assistant Clinical Professor at UCLA Medical School
- 40+ years of clinical experience
- Personalized approach, never one size fits all
- In-person and Zoom sessions available
- Strictest confidentiality
The Support You've Been Looking for Is Right Here
One consultation of adult psychotherapy with her is all it takes to start feeling yourself again.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if I need therapy?
You don’t need a diagnosis or a crisis to benefit from therapy. If you feel stuck, overwhelmed, anxious, disconnected, or like life should feel better than it does, those feelings are reason enough. Many people wait years before reaching out and wish they had started sooner.
What is the difference between a therapist, psychologist, and psychiatrist?
A therapist or psychotherapist provides talk therapy to help you work through emotional and relational struggles. A psychologist can also provide testing and formal diagnoses. A psychiatrist is a medical doctor who primarily manages medication. Dr. Sally holds a PhD in Clinical Child Psychology and is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT #29541), offering the depth of both clinical training and therapeutic experience.
What happens in the first therapy session?
The first session is about building trust and getting to know each other. You don’t need to prepare anything or have the right words. Dr. Sally listens, asks thoughtful questions, and starts understanding what’s been weighing on you. If you decide not to return after the first visit, you will not be charged.
How long does therapy take to work?
Some people feel a shift after just a few sessions, while others need more time to work through deeper patterns. There’s no fixed timeline because every person heals differently. Dr. Sally works at your pace and never rushes the process.
Is therapy really confidential?
Yes, Dr. Sally works in the strictest confidentiality and takes your privacy seriously enough that she doesn’t even use email for communication. The only exceptions are those required by law, such as imminent risk of harm to yourself or others.
Can therapy help with anxiety and depression even if I'm already on medication?
Absolutely. Medication can manage symptoms, but therapy gets to the root of what’s driving them. Many people benefit from working together, and Dr. Sally has decades of experience helping clients who are on medication as well as those who are not.