Thank you for visiting my profile! I provide assessment services to clients of a wide variety of ages. Through psychological evaluations, I work collaboratively and empathically with my clients to best understand and provide recommendations to address the challenges obstructing progress in your life.

As a psychotherapist for the past 30+ years, I feel passionate about helping people experience more joy and contentment in their relationships and in their lives. I believe that every crisis or problem that arises also provides an opportunity for healing and growth. Whether you are depressed, anxious, having marital conflicts, parenting difficulties, recovering from a traumatic experience, or in the midst of a life transition, we can problem-solve together and discover new possibilities for you. My style can best be described as interactive and engaging. I am a supportive listener, yet give honest feedback and offer suggestions for positive actions.

I am Founder and Director of the Capital Institute for Cognitive Therapy. Since 2003, the Institute has been a leading provider of research-proven treatments and compassionate care. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) has been shown to be effective for a number of problems, including: depression, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), hoarding, panic, phobias, social anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), eating disorders, insomnia, chronic pain, personality disorders, and relationship problems. Studies find most patients in CBT have significant reduction in symptoms and distress.

Many of us at one time or another need the help of an experienced therapist. Are you spending most days not feeling good, suffering from mood swings, anxiety or depression? Are you or your family/peers concerned about your drinking? Perhaps you are stuck, like "super glue" to old damaging behavior patterns, which can spell doom for a satisfying relationship. Have you reached a point in your life where you need help moving forward? If you have tried everything and nothing has worked, perhaps it's time to see a licensed therapist.

I specialize in cognitive behavioral therapy, which allows me to work most successfully with clients on a wide range of emotional and behavioral problems. I also incorporate other theoretical approaches and interventions when called for, including attachment theory; and humanistic, pastoral, and psychodynamic approaches. I work with children, adolescents, adults, couples and families. See my website: www.debbieschechter.com for more information.

In my work as a therapist for the past 25+ years I have witnessed the incredible strength and resilience in people despite life's hardships, losses and traumas. I work with adults, teens and tweens to deal with life's challenges such as relationship difficulties, depression, anxiety, loss, trauma, adoption,parenting, and divorce. As people gain deeper understanding of themselves and their behaviors , they are often able to make changes to improve their self esteem, strengthen their relationships, cope with life's ups and downs,and achieve deeper satisfaction in their lives.

I love helping individuals and couples achieve their goals and aspirations. I offer a caring, safe, and healing environment that allows clients the opportunity to explore, experience, work through problems, and create solutions that expand their potential for growth and wellness. As a proponent of integrative and holistic therapy that honors the mind-body connection and its impact on well-being, health, and happiness, I attend to the whole person, not just a set of symptoms or problems. I emphasize teaching skills that develop inner resources for successful coping in life. I use a variety of methods, but the method has to meet your needs.

I am a licensed clinical psychologist providing brief psychotherapy for individual adults who are struggling with anxiety, addictions (including compulsive sexual behaviors), career dissatisfaction and indecision, relationship conflict, problematic anger, parenting stress, mild depression, and insomnia. I work best with clients who have a clear understanding of their problems, and are strongly motivated to constructively develop, during and between sessions, the skills and resources necessary to achieve their healthy goals.

Couples work is challenging and emotionally provocative. Feelings of frustration, pain, anger and discouragement alternating with relief, hopefulness, and excitement are common among couples who are trying to resolve their marital discord. Although each couple is unique the following principles hold true in treatment of the majority of partners. 1) A good marriage requires both spouses to psychologically separate from their family of origin and shift their primary love, loyalty to each other. An individual cannot fully participate in an interdepended relationship without being first an independent and autonomous person.

If life is a journey and you are at a wrong or unfamiliar juncture, I will be a trustworthy guide and companion as you chart your way to your destination. I can help with such roadblocks as depression, anxiety, fear or shame, substance abuse, difficulties in social, romantic, marital or family relationships. Other bumps in the road might involve professional or cultural issues. My promise is to support you consistently and unconditionally. Another promise is that you will (re)discover inner resources with which you can change/enhance any part(s) of your life that you are not satisfied with.

Being a human is hard. Anxiety keeps us up at night. Depression weighs us down. And that critical voice never fails to let us know exactly how we screwed up. We feel numb, unsettled -- disconnected from those we love and disengaged from what matters most. Looking at our lives, we realize that this is not what we had planned on, and the life we yearn for seems out of reach.

People enter therapy for a variety of different reasons. You may be going through a difficult transition or grappling with life, relationship or work issues. You may be struggling with a mental health concern. You may be looking to promote personal growth or increase your own sense of well being. Whatever the reason may be, I can offer a confidential and safe environment to gain insight into your emotions and behaviors and take steps towards positive change in your life.

I specialize in helping people suffering from depression, anxiety (mood disorders), early trauma, family or personal transitions, relationship concerns (including marital and/or family issues), psychosomatic issues, losses, and grief issues that are inevitable throughout our lives. I focus on understanding the underlying fears and blockages that interfere with more satisfaction and enjoyment in life--put another way, in thinking about our psychological lives and our states of mind, the past is prologue. I deeply value the uniqueness of each patient's experience and the importance of active and supportive collaboration in promoting growth and change.

Many of us keep our distress to ourselves, believing that seeking help is a sign of weakness or skeptical that we can trust a stranger. I offer a non-judgmental and culturally sensitive space to explore your concerns. I can help you with depression, anxiety, dissatisfying relationship dynamics, parenting and stress. We will work collaboratively to reflect on and improve troublesome thoughts, behaviors and relationships.

Not accepting new clients at this time.

I work with adolescents and adults with a variety of struggles and difficulties including relationship problems, depression, anxiety, trauma, and loss. I think about treating whole people rather than diagnoses or problems. And, because each person is unique, I believe that close and careful listening is vital as I try to understand each person who comes to see me. I create secure and collaborative relationships in which my clients and I can be curious together and work on understanding and shifting patterns of thinking, feeling, and relating that may cause symptoms and interfere with living fully and freely.

I have a passion for walking people through the therapeutic process, for healing old wounds, solving problems and seeing profound changes in my clients' lives. All of my clients are my ideal clients. I love the psychotherapy process, both personally and professionally. In my opinion psychotherapy is both a necessity and a luxury in staying sane. Taking the time to care about yourself and/or your family, children or loved ones, focusing on what is hurting and not working well and trusting me to offer perspectives, insights, connections, ideas, advice, and understanding can turn most challenging situations around.

As a psychotherapist, I work with individuals to help them work through their problems by providing a supportive environment, focusing on their immediate issues as well as addressing unresolved issues from the past. My goal is to help my clients better understand the causes of their problems and how to effectively overcome them, develop better self-awareness and self-acceptance, form healthier relationships and improve the overall quality of their life. Making peace with the past is also an important component of treatment as one's past can continue to haunt the present time.

I am Board Certified in both Clinical and Neuropsychology, and my practice has evolved over the years to a primary focus on evaluations. Psychoeducational evaluations focus on academic skills and functioning, with ADD/ADHD, Learning Disabilities, and Autism Spectrum Disorders being of particular concern. These evaluations often lead to accommodations in schools and colleges and on standardized admissions tests. Neuropsychological evaluations examine the impact of psychiatric and neurological disorders on cognitive and emotional functioning. Cogscreen--AE evaluations are conducted to screen pilots and air traffic controllers.

Couple and family therapy can sometimes serve as an efficient and effective strategy to improve the wellness of the whole family system. Sometimes severe psychological distress and suffering is located within the couple or family, rather than solely within a given person as it may appear at times. I have built up a strong skill set to offer a particular form of couple and family therapy known as "psychoanalytic couple/family therapy" which zeroes in on the undercurrent, unconscious meanings for destructive, relationship patterns that are outside the awareness of the couple/family.