Healing isn’t something we do for you—it’s something we do with you.
OUR TEAM
OUR TEAM
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Dr. Michael Gadbaw, MD
MEDICAL DIRECTOR, PSYCHIATRIST
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Erica Ives, MA/LMFT
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Kayla Smith, LCSW
CLINICAL DIRECTOR | SAN FRANCISCO
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Leah Hopkins, MS/RDN
REGISTERED DIETITIAN | SANTA CRUZ
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Anna Riverso, MS/RDN
REGISTERED DIETITIAN & DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS | SAN FRANCISCO
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Rone Canyon Gasch
OUTPATIENT THERAPIST | SANTA CRUZ
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Kimberly Kapelson, MA/ASW
LEAD PRIMARY THERAPIST | SANTA CRUZ
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Angel Scott
PRIMARY THERAPIST | SANTA CRUZ
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Jill Wimmer
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Lauren Glasgow, MA/LMFT
PRIMARY THERAPIST | SAN FRANCISCO
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Cherry Lalina
RECOVERY COUNSELOR | SANTA CRUZ
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Alicia Noonkester
RECOVERY COUNSELOR | SAN FRANCISCO
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Liz Cruz Porter, BS
BUSINESS DIRECTOR
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Sue Mileto, MHA
ADMISSIONS DIRECTOR
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Gabe Smith, BA
ADMISSIONS COORDINATOR
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Mary Christensen, BS
UTILIZATION REVIEW
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Lea Horsley, BA
OUTREACH & MARKETING MANAGER
How we support you.
CLINICAL DIRECTOR
Coordinates your care, ensuring every part of your treatment plan is personalized and evolves with your progress.
PSYCHIATRIST
Provides guidance on whether medication could support your recovery and offers ongoing care if it’s part of your plan.
REGISTERED DIETITIAN
Guides your relationship with food through meal plans, nutrition education, and support for your body’s healing.
SUPPORT TEAM
Counselors, recovery coaches, and mentors are here for daily encouragement and practical help when you need it.
PRIMARY THERAPISTS
Help you understand your experiences, uncover patterns, and develop tools to create a fulfilling life.
ADMISSIONS & PROGRAM TEAM
Handles the behind-the-scenes work, from insurance to scheduling, ensuring your experience feels smooth and stress-free.
Dr. Michael Gadbaw
Dr. G, our Medical Director, collaborates on care, advocates fiercely, and shows up with consistent wisdom and purpose. A trusted presence and true role model, Dr. G is someone our PHP clients genuinely look forward to seeing.
Erica Ives
Erica has been a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist since 1997, specializing in eating disorders, trauma, and addiction. She is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist (CEDS), trained somatic therapist, and PsyD candidate.
Having navigated her own 15-year eating disorder, Erica’s personal journey fuels her passion, and her extensive experience brings both skill and heart to the healing process.
"Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending." – Maria Robinson
Kayla Smith
Kayla is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who brings a balance of gentleness and strength to everything she does. She’s known for showing up fully for those she supports, never hesitating to walk through the hard stuff. She’s also a proud Swiftie and lifelong theater kid!
Anna Riverso
Anna is the Registered Dietician Nutritionist, spreadsheet sorceress, and unofficial creative wizard of Lotus operations. Clients say she’s funny, real, and speaks their language, and that she truly gets it. What she asks of her clients is hard, and she knows that firsthand. Anna is currently flipping the script on recovery and writing her own education curriculum!
Leah Hopkins
Leah is a Registered Dietitian who combines cutting-edge research in neuroscience and nutritional biochemistry with ancient wisdom of the East in order to support the healing of mind and body together as one.
Rone Canyon Gasch
Rone specializes in trauma processing, including CPTSD, eating disorder recovery, neurodiversity, autism, anxiety, depression, disability justice, social and racial justice, queer and trans mental healthcare, and high-acuity mental healthcare. Rone offers a warm and liberatory space for clients to feel genuinely seen and deeply respected in therapy.
Kimberly Kapelson
Kimberly is a trauma-informed associate clinical social worker with over six years of experience supporting individuals through eating disorders, trauma, identity exploration, and life transitions. Her approach is holistic, gender-affirming, and rooted in the belief that healing unfolds within safe, attuned relationships.
Kimberly integrates evidence-based practices, such as strength-based therapy and relational approaches, while always centering the client’s voice and autonomy. She is deeply committed to affirming all bodies, identities, and lived experiences.
Jill Wimmer
Jill is an associate marriage and family therapist with a master’s in counseling psychology from Sofia University, where she specialized in transpersonal psychology—a holistic approach that integrates mind, body, and spirit.
Her work supports individuals by fostering reconnection with the authentic self through creative expression, mindfulness, and intrapersonal exploration.
With a focus on deep healing in addition to symptom relief, she guides individuals in rediscovering their inner wisdom while cultivating self-compassion and skills to build a life rooted in authenticity, freedom, and connection.
Lauren Glasgow
Angel Scott
If you’re looking for a therapist who’s as real as she is insightful, meet Angel. With a Master of Social Work from Cal State Monterey Bay and experience as a psychiatric social worker for Monterey County, she helps clients build self-confidence and face challenges head-on. Raised in a family of therapists, she developed a natural warmth and deep understanding of people that infuses her work with warmth and connection.
Outside the office, she’s a karaoke enthusiast and avid comic book collector.
Cherry Lalina
Find a warm, silly, and safe home at Lotus with Cherry. With a B.A. in Psychology from UCSC, her grounded spirit and accepting presence create space to embrace your full self without judgment. Dedicated to helping clients express themselves, Cherry will dance with you, sing with you, or simply sit beside you with tissues when you need them.
Sue Mileto
Sue is Lotus’ Admissions Director, guiding individuals and families through each step of the intake process with warmth, clarity, and compassion.
Sue and Gabe work closely to ensure a seamless transition into care, answering questions, coordinating assessments, and helping individuals feel supported from their very first conversation.
With a deep commitment to making treatment accessible and welcoming, Sue creates a safe, reassuring entry point for every client’s recovery journey.
Gabe Smith
Gabe has been a part of the Lotus team since 2021, serving as Admissions Coordinator for individuals and families navigating the path to treatment. He supports clients from the initial call to program orientation, providing accurate information, answering questions, and helping ensure a smooth transition into care.
Outside of work, Gabe enjoys reading, playing music, caring for his houseplants, and experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen.
Lea Horsley
Lea is passionate about building trust and authentic connections. At Lotus, she partners with providers, families, and community members to create pathways that help clients access the care they need. Whether supporting referrals, placing clients in treatment, or sharing resources, her goal is to ensure connection is never the missing piece.
Dr. Liz Esalen, Founder & CEO
Dr. Elizabeth Esalen founded The Lotus Collaborative in 2011 with a vision to create a place where science, compassion, and individuality converge in the pursuit of healing. After witnessing the limitations of traditional treatment models, Liz was driven to create a center that treats every client as a whole person—honoring their unique stories and providing tools for lasting recovery.
With a background in counseling psychology and years of experience in mental health leadership, Liz brings a depth of knowledge and passion to her work. As someone who has personally navigated the challenges of recovery, she understands the importance of holistic care that goes beyond the surface to address the heart, mind, and body.
Liz’s commitment extends to her team and the broader community. She fosters a culture of care and respect, ensuring that both staff and clients feel supported and valued. Her mission is simple yet profound: to empower individuals to heal, grow, and reclaim their lives with resilience and confidence.