About Minds Matter
Welcome! We are so glad you’re here!
In-person sessions in Los Altos & Redwood City | Online therapy throughout California
Our Mission
At Minds Matter, we take a non-pathologizing approach to therapy. This means that we believe there doesn’t need to be anything wrong with you in order for you to be feeling pain, frustration, or anxiety. The suffering that our clients experience is usually a natural human response to the world we live in.
The beauty of this work, though, is that we don’t have to be at the mercy of our circumstances. By developing insights into the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that contribute to your suffering, you can change your experience. Helping our clients develop this sense of empowerment is the most rewarding part of our mission.
Commitment to Evidence-Based Treatment
Our practice is dedicated to implementing the latest evidence-based practices.
Our backgrounds in research help us to better understand the mechanisms of these conditions and identify the treatments that are most likely to offer relief.
Treatment Modalities
We take a multimodal, person-centered approach to therapy, meaning that we do not employ only one type of therapy but, rather, combine treatment modalities in ways that can be tailored to each individual and their specific needs. We are trained in the following therapeutic modalities:
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy | Acceptance and Commitment Therapy | Emotionally-Focused Therapy | Internal Family Systems Therapy | Psychodynamic Therapy | Dialectical Behavior-Informed Therapy
Our Therapists
Dr. Christina Chick, PhD || Dr. Chick is a licensed clinical psychologist and is the Founder and Clinical Director of Minds Matter. Over the course of her career, she has had the privilege of working with individuals across a wide range of backgrounds, including Veterans, individuals with ADHD, highly sensitive individuals, and adolescents and their families. Dr. Chick specializes in couples therapy, individual therapy, and executive productivity support, all of which involve relationship management and differentiation between the needs of the self and the other.
Dr. Chick earned her PhD in Developmental Psychology from Cornell University, where she studied the role of cognitive and emotional functioning in decision making. She subsequently completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University School of Medicine. She currently holds an appointment as an Instructor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford . At Stanford, her research focuses on the role of cognitive functioning and sleep patterns in psychiatric disorders. She maintains an active presence in the academic community and engages in continuous ongoing training in order to deliver the most effective therapeutic interventions, as informed by state-of-the-field research.
Outside of the therapy office, she enjoys cooking, writing, and traveling.
Dr. Maira Karan, PhD || Maira (my-ra) is a Psychological Associate at Minds Matter who specializes in helping children, adolescents, and young adults navigate life's tender transitions through mindful changes to thoughts, habits, and behavioral patterns.
She earned her PhD in developmental psychology from UCLA with expertise in adolescent brain development, and currently serves as a Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University School of Medicine. As a first-generation child of Muslim Indian immigrants, Dr. Karan brings deep cultural understanding to her work, offering a compassionate approach that honors the complexities of identity, family dynamics, and personal growth.
Dr. Ru (Rutuja Chinchinkar), PsyD || Dr. Ru is a Psychological Associate at Minds Matter who specializes in treating anxiety, OCD, panic disorder, and chronic overthinking in adolescents and adults, using evidence-based approaches like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).
She brings a unique multicultural perspective to her practice, having worked as a therapist in Mumbai, India for seven years before earning her PsyD from Western Kentucky State University and becoming a designated crisis responder. Dr. Ru is passionate about normalizing the human experience and helping clients develop a non-pathologizing perspective on mental health, approaching therapy with a fun-loving, approachable style that transcends cultural boundaries.
