Care that’s unique - just like you.
Cantera Psychiatry operates as a private practice, allowing Dr. Ansbro and her team to offer the kind of unhurried, thorough care that is not possible within other systems.
What this means for our patients:
Appointments are longer.
Treatment plans are personalized to your needs.
The relationship between you and your provider develops at a pace that actually supports healing.
Dr. Sarah Ansbro, MD, MBA
A psychiatrist who believes medicine and humanity belong together.
Dr. Sarah Ansbro (she/they) is a board-certified psychiatrist with more than ten years of experience treating adults across the full range of psychiatric conditions. She is a proud San Antonian, and she built her practice here on purpose.
She founded Cantera Psychiatry in 2016 because she wanted a place where appointments are not rushed and where the whole person matters.
Her Training
Dr. Ansbro earned her medical degree at Baylor College of Medicine and her MBA at Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Management. She completed her psychiatry residency at the University of South Florida and is board certified through the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.
She has kept training well past residency. She completed through the Internal Family Systems Institute and applies these trainings in her therapy sessions. She has graduated from an Oregon Health Authority-approved psychedelic facilitator program to fully support patients through IM Ketamine sessions. She is a certified Reiki master and a certified practitioner of Barnes myofascial release, a gentle hands-on body therapy. She is also certified in trauma-informed care through the State of Texas.
What She Treats
Dr. Ansbro works with those who are seeking support for:
Depression and anxiety
PTSD and trauma
ADHD
Bipolar disorder
OCD
Schizophrenia
Eating disorders
She is a leading expert and specializes in complicated, treatment-resistant cases. If you have tried several approaches and still feel stuck, booking an appointment with Dr. Ansbro may be your next right step on your healing journey. .
How She Practices
Dr. Ansbro's goal is usually to reduce medication, not pile it on. She reviews each current prescription and asks an honest question about whether it is still earning its place.
From there, she adds what medication alone cannot do. She draws on Internal Family Systems, cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, and psychodynamic approaches during appointments. She monitors labs and physical health closely, and she takes the time to understand the full story behind the symptoms.
For depression that has not responded to other treatment, she offers TMS and theta burst stimulation, which use targeted magnetic pulses and require no surgery or sedation. She also provides intramuscular ketamine treatment in a safe, monitored setting.
Care for LGBTQ+ & Neurodiverse patients
Dr. Ansbro (she/her) is an advocate for the LGBTQ+ and neurodiverse communities, and her practice is affirming by design.
She provides WPATH-guided gender-affirming hormone care for transgender, nonbinary, and agender adults, along with the documentation and coordination that often comes with it. She knows how the system works and helps patients move through it.
The San Antonio LGBT Chamber of Commerce has recognized her as a Community Champion twice.
Cantera Psychiatry is a certified LGBTQ+-owned, woman-owned, and Hispanic-owned business.
Teacher, Researcher, & Advocate
Dr. Ansbro has taught medical students and psychiatric nurse practitioners at UT Health San Antonio and Des Moines University. She has published research in peer-reviewed medical journals and presented to audiences of physicians, nurses, and public health leaders.
Earlier in her career, she served as medical director of a 23-bed inpatient psychiatric unit and treated veterans in a VA psychiatric emergency center.
She is also fluent in Spanish.
Outside the Office
Dr. Ansbro is a licensed skydiver and certified in formation skydiving. She also cooks, crochets, meditates, plays piano, sings, and reads science fiction.
She brings her full, multidimensional self to her work, and she hopes you will bring yours.
A Safe Space for All:
Transforming Pain into Purpose
Dr. Sarah Ansbro delivers a powerful message at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Cantera Psychiatry, hosted by the San Antonio LGBTQ+ chamber of commerce.
Passions Defining Our Practice:
Holistic Healing.
Dr. Ansbro engages in ongoing exploration of how holistic practices can meaningfully augment allopathic medicine to foster lasting results for her patients.
Trained in Barnes-style myofascial release and Reiki, and a dedicated daily yoga practitioner, she brings a lived, embodied understanding of integrative healing to her work.
Serving our Communities.
The entire Cantera Psychiatry team prioritize using affirming, gender-competent care, including support with inclusive care documentation and coordination.
Dr. Ansbro was recognized as a San Antonio Chamber Champion in both 2020 and 2021 by the San Antonio LGBT Chamber of Commerce and continues to serve as a thought leader and advocate for underserved or misunderstood groups.
Cantera’s Commitment:
Dr. Ansbro and her team are committed to engaging in continuing education efforts.
Because of her efforts in seeking additional trainings and certifications, Dr. Ansbro is able to offer effective holistic & personalized treatment plans — going above & beyond the work of a traditional psychiatrist.
Below are Dr. Sarah Ansbro’s credentials & certifications
(beyond her medical school & residency training):
Reiki Practitioner, 2nd Degree
Reiki Practitioner, 3rd Degree
Myofascial Unwinding Technique Certification
Myofascial Release Techniques Certification
Psychedelic Facilitator Training Certificate
Trauma-Informed Care Certificate (Individual)
Care Rooted in
Internal Family Systems
Philosophy
Internal Family Systems (IFS) is a tool that conceives every human being is a system of protective and wounded inner parts lead by a core Self.
Dr. Ansbro believes that the mind is naturally multiple and that is a good thing. Just like members of a family, inner parts are forced from their valuable states into extreme roles within us.
Self is in everyone. It can’t be damaged. It knows how to heal.
Above: Letter to Dr. Sarah Ansbro from the developers of the IFS Model & Framework