Hello! Welcome to my practice. I treat children, adolescents, and adults with anxiety disorders using cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT is a present-focused, problem-focused approach to treatment, with decades of scientific research demonstrating its efficacy. CBT involves coaching clients to think about themselves and the world in a different way, as well as helping clients to confront situations that they currently fear or avoid. In contrast to many other practitioners, I actively do "exposures" during therapy sessions with my clients. These might range from going to a pet store with a child who fears dogs, accompanying a client to a lab for a blood test in the course of treatment for a needle phobia, or using public restrooms with patients who fear getting ill from dirt and germs. Each treatment plan is individualized depending on a client's unique fears and goals.
At the current time, I am seeing all of my patients via telehealth. Many studies (even some done before the pandemic) demonstrate the effectiveness of telehealth as a means of delivering cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Although all psychologists were very suddenly thrown into using telehealth platforms when the COVID pandemic hit, I have decided to continue seeing all of my patients this way for several reasons. First, once pandemic restrictions lifted, I found that the majority of my patients wanted to continue seeing me via telehealth. Particularly for busy families, the ease of scheduling telehealth sessions (with no driving, balancing the needs of other siblings, etc), has been a huge benefit. Patients have been able to do sessions on their lunch breaks from work, in their dorm rooms at college, and many schools are now allowing students to use space in the counseling office to do sessions when they have study halls or some time before after-school sports. Second, as noted already, patients have done very well with telehealth. Particularly when treating OCD, having patients meet "where their OCD lives" makes doing exposures (a core part of CBT) very effective. Depending on location, I have continued to do home visits and meet patients in person to do exposures to feared situations when a particular case calls for it.
All of my work with new clients begins with a thorough assessment. The purpose of the assessment is to learn about the history of the client's difficulties, hear about their strengths and goals, and determine whether a client (and his/her family) is a good fit for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and a good fit for telehealth. When working with children and younger adolescents, I typically meets with parents at an initial appointment before meeting with the child. At the conclusion of the assessment process, I will formulate a treatment plan. I also recommend whether it is necessary to build a treatment team for a given patient. This might include obtaining a psychoeducational evaluation for children who are struggling in school, or consulting with a psychiatrist should it seem that medication would be a useful adjunct to treatment.
CBT for anxiety disorders typically lasts 16-20 sessions, although this can vary widely, particularly with children. Some children and families see resolution of symptoms after only a few sessions, while other choose to see me on an ongoing basis even after the presenting problem has been resolved.
I have also been trained in SPACE (SUPPORTIVE PARENTING FOR ANXIOUS CHILDHOOD EMOTIONS) - Dr. Eli Lebowitz's wonderful parent-based treatment program for child and adolescent anxiety. You can read more about SPACE here.
I also enjoy working with expectant and new mothers, using a CBT approach to help them adjust to the demands of parenthood.
I am not a member of any insurance panels. Payment is made at each session via check, cash, or credit card. A receipt will be provided at the conclusion of each session that clients can then submit to their insurance company for reimbursement.
At the current time, I am seeing all of my patients via telehealth. Many studies (even some done before the pandemic) demonstrate the effectiveness of telehealth as a means of delivering cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Although all psychologists were very suddenly thrown into using telehealth platforms when the COVID pandemic hit, I have decided to continue seeing all of my patients this way for several reasons. First, once pandemic restrictions lifted, I found that the majority of my patients wanted to continue seeing me via telehealth. Particularly for busy families, the ease of scheduling telehealth sessions (with no driving, balancing the needs of other siblings, etc), has been a huge benefit. Patients have been able to do sessions on their lunch breaks from work, in their dorm rooms at college, and many schools are now allowing students to use space in the counseling office to do sessions when they have study halls or some time before after-school sports. Second, as noted already, patients have done very well with telehealth. Particularly when treating OCD, having patients meet "where their OCD lives" makes doing exposures (a core part of CBT) very effective. Depending on location, I have continued to do home visits and meet patients in person to do exposures to feared situations when a particular case calls for it.
All of my work with new clients begins with a thorough assessment. The purpose of the assessment is to learn about the history of the client's difficulties, hear about their strengths and goals, and determine whether a client (and his/her family) is a good fit for cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and a good fit for telehealth. When working with children and younger adolescents, I typically meets with parents at an initial appointment before meeting with the child. At the conclusion of the assessment process, I will formulate a treatment plan. I also recommend whether it is necessary to build a treatment team for a given patient. This might include obtaining a psychoeducational evaluation for children who are struggling in school, or consulting with a psychiatrist should it seem that medication would be a useful adjunct to treatment.
CBT for anxiety disorders typically lasts 16-20 sessions, although this can vary widely, particularly with children. Some children and families see resolution of symptoms after only a few sessions, while other choose to see me on an ongoing basis even after the presenting problem has been resolved.
I have also been trained in SPACE (SUPPORTIVE PARENTING FOR ANXIOUS CHILDHOOD EMOTIONS) - Dr. Eli Lebowitz's wonderful parent-based treatment program for child and adolescent anxiety. You can read more about SPACE here.
I also enjoy working with expectant and new mothers, using a CBT approach to help them adjust to the demands of parenthood.
I am not a member of any insurance panels. Payment is made at each session via check, cash, or credit card. A receipt will be provided at the conclusion of each session that clients can then submit to their insurance company for reimbursement.