Working with adolescents and their families has been Melissa’s primary focus since she began her work as an intern in 1992. In her two decades of work as a licensed therapist in private practice, she has treated adults, adolescents and children with a wide variety of struggles including; anxiety and depression; relationship difficulties and communication skills; grief, loss, and trauma; ADHD, learning disabilities and other school difficulties including lack of motivation; defiant/disruptive behaviors; attachment and separation; parent-child conflict; divorce; crisis management, and other mental health and relational challenges as well as addiction. Group Therapy has been a staple in her private practice. She has run many teen groups and workshops for teenagers and their parents. Melissa also specializes in working with Anxiety disorders including OCD and the OC Spectrum Disorders.
Melissa is a professional member of the:
- California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT),
- International Obsessive Compulsive Foundation (IOCDF).
- The Anxiety and Depression Association of America
- The Tourette Association of America
- Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS)
Publications and Presentations
- Parenting with the Teen Brain in Mind – developed in Collaboration with Tina Bryson
- Prescriptions for Parenting – presented with pediatrician Dr. Buddy Zuckow
- Research acknowledge in the following publications: