Life Compass: Our Story
Life Compass Counseling was founded in Davis, California in 2009 — not because there was an obvious gap in the market, but because a small group of clinicians believed something that wasn’t especially fashionable: that access and quality don’t have to be in opposition. That a practice could be rigorous and affordable. That training the next generation of therapists and serving the community weren’t separate missions — they were the same one.
That conviction became Life Compass.
A Name With Meaning
The name itself was given by Dr. Barry Orvell, a founding mentor and physician whose influence shaped the early identity of the practice. Dr. Orvell believed that good therapy required more than technique — it required integrity, depth, and a genuine commitment to psychological understanding. A compass, in his framing, wasn’t about having all the answers. It was about having something to orient by when the terrain gets difficult.
That image still fits. It still guides us.
Why Nonprofit — and Why It Matters
From the beginning, Life Compass was structured as a nonprofit — not as a workaround, but as a deliberate choice. The nonprofit model allows us to do something most private practices can’t: invest in the long-term development of associate and trainee therapists through structured supervision and mentorship, while passing the benefit of that structure directly to clients through tiered, reduced-fee care.
It’s a model that asks everyone in the practice to be committed to something larger than their own caseload. And over fifteen years, it has worked.
How We’ve Grown
The community’s needs have evolved since 2009, and so have we. What began as a small counseling center has grown into a multi-clinician practice with a collaborative team model, a deepened clinical framework, and a training program that has supported dozens of therapists on their path to licensure.
Our clinical approach has matured alongside the practice. We draw from attachment science, contemporary psychodynamic theory, and evidence-based relational practices — not because these are trends, but because the research and our clinical experience keep pointing us back to the same truth: the therapeutic relationship is where healing happens.
Where We Are Now
Of the original founding group, Carmen Isais, LMFT remains as the Owner and Clinical Director of Life Compass — the person ultimately responsible for its direction, its values, and its sustainability. Her clinical focus centers on attachment science, emotional regulation, and the development of secure relational patterns across the lifespan.
Lee Ockenden, LMFT serves as Clinical Director and Supervisor, bringing deep experience to the training and mentorship of associate and trainee clinicians. His commitment to the supervisory model has been central to how Life Compass grows its therapists — carefully, relationally, and over time.
Together, they lead a practice that has stayed true to its founding vision while continuing to evolve — still in Davis, still nonprofit, still convinced that depth and access belong together.
Fifteen Years In
We don’t think of longevity as an achievement in itself. But fifteen years of consistent, community-rooted practice does mean something: that the model works, that the relationships hold, and that the commitment was real.
We’re still here. We’re still building. And we’re still guided by the same compass.
In Honor of Our Origins
Barry Orvell, M.D. and Carmen Isais, LMFT circa 2009
Life Compass Counseling was named by Dr. Barry Orvell, a founding mentor and physician whose vision helped shape the early mission of the organization. His commitment to thoughtful, compassionate care continues to influence the spirit of the practice today.