About Us
We have been working in the mental health field for over 20 years. Our diverse experiences have provided us with a deep understanding on the complexity of healing and the power of empathy, acceptance and kindness. We value each individual's unique journey.
We love the work that we do and we are truly inspired by our client's resiliency, courage and desire to do better, feel better and be better.
Azanet Cabezas, Psy.D
Psychologist/Executive Director
Azanet is a bilingual (English and Spanish) licensed psychologist in the state of Oregon. She was born in San Salvador, El Salvador and grew up in Miami, Florida. She started her career in mental health in 1999 at the Orlowitz-Lee Children's Advocacy Center-Kristi House in Miami, Fl. providing mental health services to child victims of sexual abuse and their families.
In 2006, she moved to San Francisco, CA in order to pursue her career goal to become a clinical psychologist. She continued to gain clinical experience through her work at the Homeless Children's Network, providing mental health services to children and families affected by homelessness and domestic violence and at the Youth and Family Enrichment Services, working with adolescents struggling with delinquency, gang affiliation, substance abuse and co-occurring mental health disorders.
She completed internships at the Children's Hospital and Research Center Oakland where she provided therapeutic intervention to infants with a diagnosis in the autism spectrum using structured behavioral approaches as well as play-based, developmental and psycho-dynamic techniques.
At the Portia Belle Hume Behavioral Health and Training Center, she conducted bilingual assessments for children with developmental and neurological disorders such as Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Epilepsy, Mental Retardation, ADHD, Global Developmental Delay, and Sensory Processing Disorders. She served as a behavioral consultant for several group homes and early intervention programs in the San Francisco Bay Area and provided psychological services in the child and adolescent outpatient clinic focusing in early childhood mental health and serving Latino families.
Azanet obtained her doctoral degree in clinical Psychology in 2010 and completed her postdoctoral residency at Morrison Child and Family Services in Portland, OR providing psychological services primarily to Latino children, adolescents and their families in an outpatient clinic.
In addition to her extensive clinical experience, she has provided behavioral and mental health consultation services to the Clackamas County Children's Commission Head Start program and to the Community Action Head Start of Washington County in Oregon.
Azanet has conducted psychological and mental health evaluations for children and adolescents under the care and custody of the Office of Refugee and Resettlement (ORR) and Unaccompanied Children's Services (UCS).
In 2019, she completed the Adoptive & Foster Family Therapy Certificate Program through Portland State University's Child Welfare Partnership.
She is the founder and owner of Balance Center for Children and Families, LLC.
Xiomara Sanchez, LCSW
Clinical Director
Xiomara is a bilingual (Spanish/English) licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) in Tigard, Oregon. She was born in Managua, Nicaragua and grew up in Miami, FL.
She obtained her Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Florida International University (FIU) and went on to pursue her Master's degree in Clinical Social Work from New York University (NYU).
She is licensed to practice by the Oregon Board of Clinical Social Workers and has been practicing for over 20 years.
She has specialized in the area of childhood trauma.
In 2006, after several years as a clinician, she became the Clinical Supervisor at the Orlowitz-Lee Children's Advocacy Center-Kristi House in Miami, FL, a nonprofit agency that provides advocacy, case management and therapy services to child victims of sexual abuse. Xiomara supervised 13 clinicians and masters level social work students. She also assisted families through various court proceedings such as family, dependency, and criminal court.
She moved to Portland, Oregon in 2011 and was the clinical manager for the intensive community-based treatment services (ICTS) program at Trillium Family Services. She provided supervision to therapists and skills trainers as well treatment to children and adolescents stepping down from residential treatment and integrating back into the community.
Xiomara has many years of experience working with children, individuals and families affected by sexual abuse. She has received extensive training in early childhood mental health and family therapy and likes to work with adult survivors of sexual abuse.
Xiomara is interested in reunification cases particularly working with children and families involved in the child welfare system. She also likes to provide clinical supervision to masters level students as well as clinicians working towards their license.
She has received training in evidenced-based practices such as culturally-modified trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (CM-TF-CBT), Collaborative problem solving (CPS), Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT), and Applied suicide intervention skills training (ASIST).
She completed the Adoptive & Foster Family Therapy Certificate Program through Portland State University's Child Welfare Partnership.