Kendra Delahooke shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Kendra, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
I’m a big morning person and I find immense joy in slow mornings. I’m usually up before the sun, brew a cup of coffee, and read 1-2 chapters of a business book. Reading in the morning helps me remind me of my goals, lean into gratitude and pause before jumping into work!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi, I’m Kendra Delahooke, the founder and CEO of the Child Therapy Center of Los Angeles. We’re a concierge-style therapy practice specializing in children, teens, and families.
What makes us unique is that we don’t just manage symptoms…we go deeper to uncover and treat the root causes of challenges like anxiety, big emotions, or behavioral struggles.
Our approach is playful, neuroscience-informed, and designed to bring lasting results. We believe that every family has the ability to return to joy, they simply need the customized roadmap to get there.
At our modern, sensory friendly therapy centers, every child is paired with a highly trained therapist, and every parent receives concierge-level support so they feel confident and cared for throughout the process.
The heart of my work—and my brand—is about giving families clarity, relief, and hope in a world full of confusing and misleading advice. I believe children thrive when their nervous systems are regulated, their parents feel empowered, and therapy feels like a joyful, creative experience.
That’s the environment we create every day inside our offices.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
The groundwork for my unique business approach actually comes from my childhood. As a young girl, growing up as the middle child, I had a natural tendency to bottle up emotions. This lead to chronic stomach aches, an IBS diagnosis, and a lack of self-confidence. This constant low-lying anxiety lead me to have beliefs such as, “Something is wrong with me,” “Why can’t I have more fun?” and “I’m not good enough.”
I know now that my body was communicating on behalf of my nervous system. I simply needed a translator! After a lot of support, self-discovery, and self-study on the nervous system and child development… I came to realize new beliefs that fuel my vision today.
The main one being, my body is highly intelligent and when I learn to work with it, I am unstoppable.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
I used to do everything in my power to avoid mistakes and challenges. It was a costly way to operate and each time I made a mistake I take a while to recover.
Now? I see mistakes and problems as a SIGN that I’m following my dreams! This perspective shift has changed everything. It’s also easy to see several years into building CTC that the most difficult times lead to the biggest breakthroughs. This helps me relax anytime something doesn’t go as planned because I know there is treasure on the other side!
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
The lies of the mental health industry are one of the main reasons I started my business. Although I believe all therapists are well intentioned, they are operating with the education and tools they were taught. It is my strong belief that this education simply doesn’t cut it anymore.
I interview a LOT of therapists and 9/10 0f them cannot answer the question, “What is the nervous system?” This is incredibly disturbing to me on my many levels. The nervous system is literally the command central of our mental health… But graduate programs and many predominate theories are still teaching that emotions still live in the mind!
These are the top 3 lies of child and adolescent mental health care:
-Kids should be able to self-regulate
-Parents just need to try harder, or have more tools
-Discipline is the most effective way to change behavior
These lies or false beliefs ARE the reason why I started CTC. A place where therapists receive exceptional training and prioritize staying current with the latest science so that therapy doesn’t feel like a vague, long process. Instead, it feels like a soft landing place, with a clear roadmap, and clear results.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: What will you regret not doing?
I don’t love the word regret because the only reality that exists is now… but there is a word that comes to mind when I hear regret- celebration.
Building a company is the most challenging, confronting, beautiful experience. When I first started I had this belief (myth) that as long as I put my best foot forward everything will go super well, super fast and without speed bumps!
But the reality is most days feel messy. Progress is anything but linear, and the energy output doesn’t always feel worth it. But here’s the thing. Building a business may feel like stacking one grain of sand at a time… but most founders forget to step back and notice the gorgeous sand castle in front of them.
Celebrating wins is immensely important- especially while building as your goalpost continuously keeps getting moved upward. I won’t regret putting down my computer, going to dinner with my best friend, and celebrating the 10 small wins of the month.
Celebration allows the body to exhale- the biggest parenting hack we teach our parents!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.childtherapycenterla.com
- Instagram: @childtherapycenter
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/child-therapy-center-of-los-angeles
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ctclosangeles/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/child-therapy-center-of-los-angeles-los-angeles-3
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIBcOTq-Ee8sk7q0sW_62yw
