
Michael Herrera
MS, LMFT #85914
Lake Forest
Clinical Director

Leilani Carinio
MS, LMFT #97564
Huntington Beach
Clinical Director

Dr. Kevin Chun, MD
Psychiatrist
Dr. Chun is a board-certified young adult & child and adolescent psychiatrist who specialize in working with college students. He likes to think about patients in a holistic way- using medications, lifestyle interventions, and talk therapy. He received his undergraduate degree from Johns Hopkins and attended the University of Maryland for medical school. He completed his psychiatry residency at Dartmouth. During his training at Dartmouth, he had opportunities to work with high-achieving teens and families who attended Dartmouth College with anxiety, depression, self-esteem, suicidal thoughts, and perfectionism issues.
He completed the child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship at UC Irvine and currently holds the faculty appointment at Loma Linda University and works in private practice focusing both on psychiatric care and psychotherapy. Dr. Chun has special interests in working with college-bound teens and students, Asian American families, and teens with LGBT backgrounds.

Briana Eckels
MSW, ACSW #84587
Lake Forest
Primary Therapist
Briana Eckels received her Master’s in Social Work in May of 2018 from the University of Southern California. She is currently an Associate Clinical Social Worker (ACSW) for adolescents at SoCal Adolescent Wellness in Lake Forest. Briana’s passion for working with youth began as a childcare provider. She has worked with youth with autism spectrum disorder and their families as an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapist from September 2018-to September 2019. Briana is passionate about eradicating the early cycles of problematic behaviors so that they do not continue as our youth grow into adults. She honors providing a safe, supportive, and empathetic environment when providing therapeutic services. Working under the supervision of a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) at So Cal Adolescent Wellness, Briana is excited to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker specializing in working with youth who have experienced trauma and abuse. For self-care. Briana enjoys reading, spending time with loved ones, and watching a movie while enjoying a pint of Ben &Jerry’s ice cream.

Samantha Karay
MS, AMFT 114751
Samantha earned her Master’s in Counseling in 2019 and is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist at SoCal Adolescent Wellness, Huntington Beach. Sam has been working with teens and young adults for eight years and has extensive knowledge in neurodiversity. She aims to build a collaborative relationship with clients while implementing culturally sensitive and evidenced-based interventions. Sam enjoys music, running outdoors, and spending time with loved ones.

Bryn Chesser
MS, AMFT 133416, APCC 11795
Bryn received her Master’s in Clinical Psychology from Vanguard University. She is currently registered as an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist and as an Associate Professional Clinical Counselor. Bryn’s passion for working with adolescents is founded in a desire to walk alongside youth in an intimate and collaborative way as they bring about positive, meaningful, and long-lasting change. Her passion for working with this age group originated as a youth soccer coach and trainer. Bryn’s treatment approach is trauma-informed with foundations in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Mindfulness, and Art Therapy. Her personal interests include playing soccer, surfing, art, film photography, and music.

Lauren MacKinnon
MS, AMFT 134433
Lauren received her M.S in Counseling from CSU Fullerton and her B.S in Psychology with specialization of Child/Adolescent Development from CSU Channel Islands. She is currently an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (AMFT) for adolescents at SoCal Adolescent Wellness in Lake Forest and Huntington Beach. She has worked with children, adolescents, and families across cultures and socioeconomic classes. Lauren uses different therapeutic techniques, including CBT, intersectional feminist therapy, strengths based therapy, mindfulness, and art therapy. She has a passion for empowering adolescents to feel connected to oneself and others. She believes in a collaborative approach using empathy, authenticity, and genuineness with both adolescents as well as their families. For self care, Lauren enjoys spending time with loved ones, watching movies, kickboxing, art, and reading.

Jim Brillon
MS, LMFT #100807
LPCC #5081
Group Facilitator
Jim is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor. He is Group Facilitator at SoCal Adolescent Wellness and has a private practice. Previously, Jim worked with patients a families for several years in a hospital-based chemical dependency recovery program. Jim takes a holistic approach to working with clients, integrating psychodynamic, CBT, DBT and the mind-body connection. He is the creator of a video series entitled, Out & INformed on TherapyCable.com targeting mental health issues in the LGBTQ Community. Jim’s other passions include Qi Gong, gardening, camping and getting out into nature.

Jean-Marc Tardieu
(Certified) Music Therapist
Jean-Marc Tardieu is a Music Therapist as well as a singer and writer, born and raised in the twin island republic of Trinidad & Tobago in the southern Caribbean. He is a graduate of the internationally acclaimed Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA where he majored in Music Therapy, received a minor in Psychology.
Jean-Marc is also the Associate Producer for the award winning and internationally acclaimed performing arts group “The Love Movement” in Trinidad & Tobago. He has written, co produced and sung on their albums. He currently works with Get in Tune Music Therapy and several other companies doing Music Therapy sessions at various Hospitals and Rehabilitation centers throughout Southern California.

Rupa Ward
MA, LMFT #115736
Group Facilitator
Rupa Ward has an MA in Psychology with Marriage and Family emphasis from Chapman University. She is an EMDR certified therapist who specializes in treating trauma related issues.
She utilizes different therapeutic techniques, including CBT, ACT, EMDR, voice dialog, assertiveness training, Gottman Couples Therapy and strategies derived from mindfulness practice and body-mind integration theories. She has extensive experience in facilitating recovery from grief and loss.
She has taught yoga and meditation in the community for years and offers regular workshops on mindfulness.

Kyle Perry
Admissions and Discharge Planner
Kyle Perry started his experience working in mental health in 2015 in a variety of capacities including residential treatment manager and clinical placement specialist. His drive and passion to help others in their darkest moments brought him to SoCal Adolescent Wellness in 2018 as one of the company’s first hires. he has been a fundamental part of the team as the center has grown from a single location to 3 locations in North and South Orange County. As the Admissions and Discharge Planner, Kyle has a proven reputation of helping families locate the best treatment options available for adolescents and their families.

Stephanie Hirsch
BA
Huntington Beach
Program Assistant