Dr. Serena Gupta

Chief Executive Officer, CEO

Dr. Serena Gupta is a devoted and skilled therapist, helping those in recovery achieve their goals and find purpose. Most addictions come along with other disorders like depression, eating disorders, anxiety, PTSD, and chronic pain. Dr. Gupta has over 15 years of experience helping clients from all backgrounds navigate through these challenges to find lasting recovery.

Borrowing from Carl Jung, Dr. Gupta believes addiction is an attempt to ease deep emotional pain and seek inner-fulfillment. She doesn’t reduce her clients down to diagnoses–but seeks to understand how the presenting symptoms and complaints reveal their true struggles.

Serena Gupta received her Master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University and her Ph.D. in Depth Psychotherapy from Pacifica Graduate Institute.

Dr. Gupta combines therapeutic approaches that address your thinking processes with other methods that reveal the deeper unconscious. In therapy, you work to uncover the internal messages that have shaped your identity–even those working below the surface that you’re not quite aware of.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Dream interpretation
Brief Solution-Focused Therapy
Sand play
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)

Dr. Gupta previously served as co-owner and clinical director at a well-known treatment center but left to create a program where she can focus on providing strong clinical care working side-by-side with her clients. Dr. Gupta takes pride in her business acumen because she knows proper management means efficient care. This allows the client’s well-being to be the primary focus for the whole staff.

Mikel W. Carver

Chief Operating Officer, COO

“Truth is not what you want it to be; it is what it is, and you must bend to its power or live a lie”- Miyamoto Musashi.

Mikel Carver brings a unique mix of corporate and technical experience to The Ho Tai Way. That experience provides a solid ethical and spiritual foundation to all that we do. Earnestly seeking a place to use his skills to help others, Mr. Carver found that desire fulfilled in substance abuse treatment–helping those who are struggling to break free of their addictions.

The substance abuse treatment field has problems–chronic relapses occur too frequently. Business practices are not always straightforward. Mr. Carver uses his experiences to improve existing models of client care while putting in place smart and effective business practices. This means a better treatment experience for you.

While processing his experiences in clinical practice, Mr. Carver did something that few of us take the time to do. He went on a sabbatical to connect with his own spirituality, realizing this would help his clients.

Through prayer, meditation, personal introspection, yoga, and extensive study–Mr. Carver realized the foundation of true change lies in practicing respect, compassion, honesty, generosity, and humility.

Mr. Carver used his experience to develop an organizational system that teaches and supports the consistent practice of these values. In doing so, we become useful members of our society, nurturing it and giving it strength.

This is The Ho Tai Way.

Marlene Reed

Chief Financial Officer

Marlene has 20 years of experience working in public accounting and has been CFO for high growth start ups. She enhances the leadership team by bringing in strengths of financing, strategic planning and implementation. Marlene’s professionalism and integrity is a great asset to The Ho Tai Way as she is committed towards financial growth in a responsible and ethical way.

Lawrence V. Tucker, M.D.

Medical Director

Lawrence V. Tucker, M.D. is a Diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and a Diplomate of the American Board of Addiction Medicine, practicing in pharmacological management of psychiatric disorders and addiction medicine. Dr. Tucker attended UCLA for his undergraduate degree, where he obtained a B.S. in Physiological Sciences. He then attended UCLA School of Medicine for his Medical Degree and stayed at UCLA for his residency in Psychiatry and Neurology. He has been in leadership roles since 2006 and is a Certified Physician Executive. Prior to attending UCLA, Dr. Tucker served in the United States Marine Corps, Infantry, and served in Desert Storm. Among the long list of accomplishments, Dr. Tucker feels most accomplished with his blended family of 5 children and his wife of over 13 years. In addition, Dr. Tucker has a private practice in Newport Beach CA. His paradigm of treatment is that he: “Treats a person Not a Diagnosis”. He uses a holistic model and incorporates sobriety, exercise, diet, therapy, supplements, as well as psychopharmacological therapies.

Kajal Aggarwal AMFT

Associate Marriage and Family Therapist
Kajal Kiran Aggarwal was born and raised in Illinois. Her dual undergraduate degree was in Political Science & Psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Following undergrad, Kajal was licensed as a DCFS case worker in Illinois, case managing children with complicated developmental disabilities living at a long-term care facility. Kajal then went on to attend the Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois and graduated Summa Cum Laude with her Masters of Science in Social Work. She spent her post graduate career focused on women’s and children’s issues. She then moved to YWCA Metropolitan Chicago, where she served as a therapist, volunteer trainer, co-facilitated children’s programming and a rape crisis counselor. Kajal regularly traveled to the state capital in order to advocate for legislation that would positively impact survivors of sexual violence & women overall. Kajal is proud of the accomplishments of her agency during this time, having successfully lobbied lawmakers to pass women’s safety measures. Kajal is committed to the social work ideals of service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity and competence. These principals guide Kajal’s practice throughout her career.

Miranda Carlson, RADT -1

Lead Detox Technician

Miranda completed her bachelor’s degree in Psychology at Governor’s State University driven by a passion of uplifting others and being of service. Having first-hand experience and personally coping with mental health struggles, Miranda leans towards helping women with similar struggles. Miranda aspires to provide a strong supportive foundation , relatability and acts a guide to women struggling with co-occurring issues of addiction and mental health. Her goal is to lift up other women and inspire them to find inner strength and hope.