Psychotherapy

Good psychotherapy should help you see and make sense of the way your mind is working so you can change how you see and treat yourself, your feelings, and the people in your life who matter to you. We are often a slave to our automatic ways of thinking and behaving. A skilled, experienced psychotherapist should possess the ability to help you see yourself through a different, more accurate lens, and help you make changes in your thoughts and actions so you can improve your quality of life.

Popular culture has mischaracterized psychotherapy as a passive process where the patient talks or vents, and the psychotherapist listens, nods or even nods off. Venting to your psychotherapist, although sometimes temporarily relieving, generally does not lead to lasting change. Passive listening on the part of a psychotherapist is not enough to heal your trauma or remodel your mind. As in any successful relationship, to be effective, psychotherapy requires attunement, engagement, honest communication, courage, and collaboration.

If you decide you'd like to make an appointment for psychotherapy, you should feel comfortable with the doctor you choose to help you and understand the proposed plan to help you achieve your goals.

If you are interested in pursuing psychotherapy to help you resolve your difficulties, you should ask the doctor many questions so that...

1) you have a secure understanding of what you can expect,

2) you can assess whether the doctor’s particular way of working appeals to you.

As a psychotherapy or coaching client, you are a consumer.

It is your right to ask questions, to have expectations, and to become informed about what you are signing up for. 

Remember, all psychotherapy is NOT created equal; psychotherapists and methods can differ greatly in their effectiveness.

Dana Foundation’s video shows us how psychotherapy can often change the brain and help people modify destructive behaviors to create positive and enduring mood and behavior changes.

The implications of brain neuroplasticity are astounding. Neuroplasticity research shows that psychotherapy leads to positive brain changes. Our brains can adapt and become more resilient no matter how old we are.

• Learning is central to promoting neuroplastic brain growth. Psychotherapy will equip you with newly learned skills and techniques to handle your feelings, reality, and behavior in ways that promote your success.

• As your brain changes in your favor, maladaptive habits will die off and will be replaced with more adaptive habits, behaviors and feeling management strategies.

• The Dana Foundation is devoted to advancing neuroscience that benefits societies across the world. They explore the “connections between neuroscience and society’s challenges and opportunities.” The Dana Foundation has a mission to “maximize the potential of the field to do good.” Check out the Dana Foundation for more information and resources about neuroscience and brain awareness. https://dana.org/

Recognition for Outstanding Clinical Teaching

Dr. Kay has been honored with the AWARD FOR "Outstanding Clinical Faculty Teaching"
By the UCLA Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine.

"You have single-handedly taught us the most important lessons of being a listener, a healer, a therapist. Learning from you has been transformative for me and my patients. I am not exaggerating by saying your course and supervision were the highlight of my entire residency."
 

"Dr. Kay's course was by far my favorite clinical experience during all of residency.  Dr. Kay presented videotaped therapy sessions at each meeting, and discussed technique, her thought process, and the longitudinal impact of her work on each patient. I will never forget the first class when she showed her work and began to outline techniques.  It was as if a lightbulb went on in the room and we all realized this was entirely different from any training we ever had before.”

"Dr. Kay's AB-ISTDP clinic is the most clinically important thing that someone can do in residency, especially if that someone wants to really learn how to do therapy. Many other clinics/types of therapy discuss theory a lot, but this shows the actual work being done, which gives much better insight into technique and effect. Real patient learning.” 

“I think your course is one of the most valuable experiences I have had in my residency education." 

“There is no equal to seeing therapy in action, and having a skilled clinician narrate the moment-to-moment process for you.  
Dr. Kay is also among the kindest, warmest, and most genuine mentors I found during residency.   I am so grateful to have been guided by her both professionally and personally over the last several years."

"If you want to practice psychotherapy, learning AB-ISTDP from Dr. Kay will forever impact your work by strengthening your observational skills, deepening your understanding of human emotions, and teaching you to block defenses that get in the way of the therapeutic process.”        

“Dr. Kay brings energy to the learning experience that is unusually motivating; my classmates and I leave the weekly seminar feeling rejuvenated and motivated to try to implement the therapy with our own patients.
I would count this experience as the most valuable psychotherapeutic learning of my four years of residency.”

"Dr. Kay's course was a valuable introduction to AB-ISTDP which has been the most challenging and rewarding learning experience for me as a psychiatrist. It has expanded my ability to care for both therapy and medication patients and provides a framework for understanding and approaching patients that is clear, practical, and more informative than the DSM."