Inland Empire Telehealth Therapist
Culturally Responsive & Relational Care with Rafael Cazares, LMFT
Fellow Traveler. Professional Ally.
Hi! I’m Rafael Cazares, LMFT.
As a Mexican-American, first-generation graduate, and the son of immigrants, I have spent my life balancing two distinct sets of expectations. That experience enriched me, but it also meant figuring out my identity, social relationships, and career without much of a map or compass.
Driven by a search for stability, I initially built a career in IT. I enjoyed the mental challenge of technical problem-solving, but I felt a strong pull toward something deeper: real human connection.
My path into therapy was ultimately shaped by walking through my own personal twists and turns. Losing my mother and key mentors taught me what it means to live with their absence while keeping them alive in my own choices and actions. Stepping into fatherhood brought its own shift: learning to unlearn parenting patterns I grew up with, coming to terms with my identity as a father, and figuring out what it really means to be a supportive parent and partner.
Through all of it, what made the biggest difference was having people who were willing to join me in the struggle, truly listen, and help me find my way forward.
As an Inland Empire therapist, my goal is to offer that exact space for you. Whether you are navigating your identity, working through grief, unlearning family patterns, or balancing where you came from with where you are going, you do not have to figure it out alone.
Education, Credentials & Specialized Training
Education & Licensure
Master of Science (M.S.) in Counseling: California State University, Northridge (CSUN)
License: Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #150588)
Clinical Approach
My work is structured as a Process-Based Practice. Rather than forcing you into a one-size-fits-all formula, I draw from a deep foundation of evidence-based modalities tailored to your unique goals. My practice is primarily centered around three core approaches:
Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT): Helping you step back from anxious thought loops and align your life with what truly matters.
Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT): Tools to soften a harsh inner critic and ease generational guilt, shame, and perfectionism.
Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy (EFIT): Processing deep emotional responses to heal attachment wounds and build secure relationships.
Specialized Advanced Training
Chicanx Affirmative Therapy: Specialized training through the Institute for Chicanx Psychology and Community Wellness, centering culturally grounded, liberation-focused care for Latinx and BIPOC individuals.
Trauma & Exposure Therapies: EMDR (EMDRIA-trained), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), and Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) for anxiety and intrusive thoughts.
Paternal & Perinatal Mental Health: Specialized training through Postpartum Support International (PSI) focusing on paternal mental health, identity shifts in fatherhood, and perinatal support (currently pursuing PMH-C certification).
Relational Dynamics: Advanced training in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT Externship) and the Gottman Method (Level 2) to help individuals heal past relational patterns and set clear boundaries.
Professional Affiliations
Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS)
American Psychological Association (APA) Division 51: Society for the Psychological Study of Men and Masculinities
Ready to Connect?
Taking the first step toward therapy takes real courage, but you don't have to navigate it alone.