Jimmy Cabrera Jr, LCSW

Psychotherapist // Reiki Master

It’s interesting, the curveballs life throws at us.  The only thing truly in our control is how we react. What I’ve learned is to simply pay attention, to be curious, and to trust that just being with whatever we are given may magically bring forth learning, movement, and a higher and greater good.

I was born and raised on the Central Coast of California into a Mexican-American family whom, for untold generations, knew only this land as home.  My mom wanted to protect me from gangs and other dangers in the neighborhood in which I grew up, so she enrolled me in private Christian elementary and junior high schools.  I felt ostracized not only because I was brown and low-income, but around this time I also became painfully aware that I was gay.

Growing up a closeted, low-income, POC in conservative suburbia, pre-Internet, brought a lot of heartache, isolation, and resentment toward God.  High school was challenging on many levels, but I graduated, and was fortunate to be accepted at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, only to drop out in my 3rd year.  I took a 5 year hiatus from school, worked, and engaged in many self-destructive behaviors.  Eventually I moved to Long Beach, CA, where I finally completed my bachelor’s degree, and then earned a master’s degree in social work with an emphasis in community mental health.

Just before starting grad school I began practicing yoga, which completely changed my life— both the quality of life, and the direction it took.  I became infatuated with mindfulness and meditation, and though I’d played sports much of my life, this was the first time I’d brought such a focused awareness to the subtleties of the internal landscape of my body, and discovered how the body can be a tool to quiet (or awaken) the mind.  In 2017 I completed a 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training, the philosophies of which contribute to my theoretical orientation. 

My curiosity with the mind, body, and spirit continues to deepen.  I am a certified Reiki Master, psychonaut, and student of ancient knowledge and technologies that suggest we are more powerful than we know. Though (sadly) taboo in some circles and mainstream, studies in quantum science demonstrate repeated evidence that our consciousness is energy, and that our focused thoughts, visualizations, and emotions affect physical reality.  I will remain a lifelong student of the science underlying these practices.

My path to the present has been an epic journey, and I wouldn’t change a thing.  I’ve forgiven, and I continue to learn to forgive.  I’ve made peace with the aforementioned curveballs, and I’ve returned to love and re-discovered my idea of Source, or God.  I truly believe we are here on Earth to learn, by identifying and integrating experiences and imprints to achieve a cosmic “level up,” and to radiate our unique spirits for the good of everyone and everything.

I believe facilitating healing is one thing my spirit came here to do.  Let me hold some space for you.  Come as you are, wherever and however you are.