Assessing Now: Radical Recovery Process Group

location: online

time/day: to be determined with the first 3 founding members of the group and kat zwick

How do we navigate a world in which power and authority structures exist and impact us, in both positive and negative ways, while maintaining recovery? How do we bring our psychological wellness into alignment with our own, autonomous beliefs and practices in the face of powerful forces around us? How do we challenge the “status quo” both internally and externally while taking care of ourselves and vice versa?

This process group is for those recovering/recovered from eating disorders, codependent or unhelpful relational patterns, substance misuse, and other compulsive behaviors, who identify as Queer, Gender Expansive, Poly, Kinky, and/or otherwise subverting of hegemonic power structures, wherein an explicit aspect of the group is exploring recovering from larger oppressive systems, in addition to internal and interpersonal symptoms and challenges.

Cost: $75/group

Sliding scale spots: 2

Available to clients residing in: California, Illinois, Washington, and Colorado, where Kat is clinically licensed

Who might be a good fit for this group:

Those who wish to deepen intimacy in their interpersonal relationships
Those who struggle to align their political beliefs with their internal self-beliefs, and/or their behaviors towards themselves or others
Those who struggle with patterns of relationship difficulties
Those with a history of eating disorders and/or substance misuse
Those who are interested in understanding how authority and systems, including micro and macro authority and systems, impact mental and interpersonal health and can be impacted upon in recovery
Those who identify as queer, trans, gender expansive, poly, and/or kinky

This is a long-term relational process group, which means that members tend to participate in the group long-term so that they can work on their relational patterns as they arise in the group itself.

Coming Soon: Coercive Control Recovery Group Series

Skills & Creative Writing Group

Location: Online

Frequency: 1.5 hours 3x/month

Time/Day: Coming Soon

For Clients Residing In: California, Illinois, Washington & Colorado Where Kat Zwick is licensed

Cost: Full fee $75 per group ; 2 Sliding Scale spots available

This group is for adults in recovery from coercive control situations, such as high-control groups, cults, spiritual institutions and relationships.

The curriculum will follow this overarching format:

Month 1: Addressing The Recovering Nervous System

Months 2 & 3: Individuating & Claiming Oneself As Separate and Sovereign

Month 4: Defining One’s Own Values

Month 5: Defining One’s Own Goals

Month 6: Defining One’s Own Relationships

Month 7: Being With The Present & Planning Forward

Group members will receive the group curriculum as well as a skills packet prior to the starting the group.

Read More About This Group:

Survivors of coercive control may have commonalities in their recovery needs, such as identifying and validating their own sense of self now, reality, self-esteem and self-efficacy; their own sense of values and goals; their own definitions of relationships and health moving forward; and their own sense of interdependence - that is, a sense of being able to trust and relate to themself as well as others in balance.

This group series is a contained skills and creative writing recovery group designed to help individuals self-reflect, receive gentle therapeutic guidance for self-empowerment and validation, disempower controlling messages and tactics still left over in their minds and hearts that do not belong to them, and offer a space to connect with others as each group member moves forward. This group is designed to support each person in their individuality, with respect and care.

This group may be appropriate for individuals who have recently or in the past gotten out of a high-control group, cult, institution or relationship and wish to engage in a therapeutic environment with other survivors and a trained therapist to reflect, write and utilize skillful practices to make new choices for moving forward now. This group can work in tandem with other supportive services, such as individual therapy, psychoeducational consultation, support groups, educational services, books and conferences that help many individuals take hold of their freedom and move forward in their lives.

All potential group members will have an assessment to determine clinical appropriateness for the group and so they can also get to know Kat, and each person will have the opportunity to meet with Kat at least two times after that prior to joining the group to define their goals for the group and to make sure they feel comfortable moving forward with Kat as the group facilitator.

Kat Zwick (she/they) is a Certified Coercive Control Specialist and a member of the International Cultic Studies Association. They are also a Certified Group Psychotherapist and Qualified Supervisor. Her approach for this group is intentionally consent-oriented, trauma-informed and person-centered, and the group is structured in multiple ways to create a healthy, clinically ethical and supportive group therapy experience specifically for high-control/coercive control group and relationship experience survivors.

LGBTQIA & Neurodivergent Affirming

DBT Graduates Skills & Application Group

location: telehealth

mondays 5:30 - 7pm Pacific time - 2x/month - for a 6 month cycle

This group is for those who have completed DBT skills training either with Kat Zwick or elsewhere and would like to continue to deepen their skills knowledge and application with fellow DBT Graduates and Kat in this supportive DBT skills-focused therapeutic space. This group meets 2x per month and is offered on 6 month cycles. The group can accept 6 members at a time and will always offer 1-2 sliding scale spots per cycle. The group is LGBTQIA+ & neurodivergent affirming.

Cost: Full fee: $75/group

Sliding scale spots: 2 per cycle

Clients must be appropriate for the outpatient level of care to participate in this group.

23-Week LGBTQIA & Neurodivergent Affirming DBT Mindfulness & Skills Group

As of Spring 2026, after 8 years of running this group for the Greater Santa Cruz community, this group is currently on pause. Please check back later for future series dates!

The DBT Mindfulness & Skills Group Series is a 23-week series for adults that teaches all the core skills and tools of Dialectical Behavior Therapy to a committed group of recovering individuals. It does so through a social justice and affirming framework.

This group may be helpful for those who struggle with their own emotional volatility or hypersensitivity in their personal or professional lives, unstable friendships or relationships, disordered eating, self-harm, manipulative or coercive communication patterns OR passive or conflict-avoidant communication patterns, reactive suicidality, overwhelming helplessness or hopelessness, emotional eating, codependent interpersonal styles, compulsive sexual behaviors, gambling, or similar, and substance use issues.