ABOUT

I have been a practicing psychologist in the United States for 40 years treating individuals and couples with a wide range of problems and issues. I have extensive experience treating anxiety disorders, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, marital conflicts, sexual and gender identity issues, and doing therapy with the elderly. I generally follow the Cognitive Behavior Therapy approach to treatment but experience has taught me that it is even more important to match the type of treatment to the client's personality and presenting problem than to force people to conform to a particular treatment model. Thus, I frequently explore underlying emotional conflicts, historical and childhood issues, and interpersonal or familial conflicts. When focusing on communication in marital therapy, I pay attention to the surface words but mostly work towards identifying the subtle underlying "between the lines" messages that the sender is often unaware of sending or the listener does not hear. Bringing these hidden messages and feelings out into the open usually results in a rekindling of the mutual understanding, respect, and love that attracted the couple to each other in the first place. However, on those occasions when the identified differences are irreconcilable and divorce is unfortunately necessary, I help the couple achieve as amicable a divorce as possible. When treating individuals or couples, I am goal oriented, interactive, quickly share my observations and impressions, and am prepared to offer specific advice based on my expertise and established psychological principles. I welcome questions regarding the reasoning or rationale for my comments or specific suggestions and am very open to modifying my approach based on the reactions and feedback I receive. I have found that therapy works best when it is a collaborative relationship that is open, interactive, and caring.