Better Health Starts Here.

Would you like to take control of your life? If you repeatedly find yourself in relationships that hurt, have painful or traumatic events that still interfere with the enjoyment of your life today, suffer from anxiety or panic attacks,or have a relationship with food or your body that is hurting you, then I would like to help. I have nearly two decades of experience helping hundreds of clients move from pain and suffering to joy and happiness. My advanced training and experience in EMDR and Somatic Experiencing allow me to offer you a uniquely effective form of therapy designed to help you heal and get back to the business of living your life as quickly as possible.

Are you looking to make a positive change in your life but not quite sure what or how? Are there transitions in your life and you are unsure of how to cope with them? Do you have children and adolescents that you are finding hard to relate to? Do you feel stressed because of everything life throws at you? As your clinician, I want to work together to find a solution to these challenges. As humans, we should not have to deal with daily stress as a part of our lives and we shouldn’t have to figure it out all on our own. I specialize in working with children and adolescents. These two age populations are crucial in human development. During these stages of life, children experience many confusing emotions that relate to self identity, peer relationships, family relationships, life transitions and school. Working with children that range from 2-18 years old has allowed me to develop my knowledge with this delicate population. Working with children and adolescents, I have been trained to use different theoretical approaches, that which includes systemic, cognitive behavioral, postmodern, and humanistic. I also have experience working in the school setting providing counseling support and working within special education. My role is to provide support not only to the child, but also to the parents and family.

I have been working as a therapist/social worker with adults, children, and families through different organizations and psychiatric hospitals since 1993. Since then, I have also been on the journey of discovering my own true self through Western and Eastern psychotherapy. Studying both the Western psychology and the discipline of an Eastern mystical path and experiencing them I came to integrate these two schools and incorporate them into my therapeutic work. In my practice, I use mystical stories, and movements, when necessary. In short, my work is to help you to work though your issues and life predicaments to awaken your inner love, and to find joy and beauty in your daily life. Working at The Bridge to Recovery in Santa Barbara for the the last 2 years, I have experienced doing a lot of workshops and groups to help clients with childhood trauma and process addiction. One of the workshops that has been my specialty is Cinema Therapy group. In my private practice I do circle of psycho-spiritual Cinema Therapy groups as well as individual and couple therapy.

The Villa Treatment Center with upscale amenities, innovative addiction treatment and extended care services, delivers quality treatment programming, strong recovery support, and an unparalleled level of comfort and care while keeping an environment of hope, strength, love, and tolerance for all. Let us help you take those first steps. The Villa Treatment Center is the premiere addiction treatment facility in Los Angeles. Know someone in need of addiction recovery? Contact us today!

"HEALTH AND HAPPINESS is my dedication to CHILDREN and their FAMILIES!" This is this very belief that reflects my life calling. The understanding that the proper nurturing of our minds and hearts will inevitably create a future that is balanced in justice and compassion. My mission is to translate this truth from an abstract macro cosmic concept into a practical microcosm. I have extensive experience counseling individual adults and children, couples, and families who are struggling with recovery from abuse, trauma, grief, depression, anger management, anxiety, academic problems, behavioral problems, low self-esteem, and conduct disorder. My goal is to offer a safe and peaceful environment for my clients to cope more effectively with their life issues and mental health problems. I would like to provide educational insight and instructional courses focused on healthy, responsible parenting. I present well rounded courses for every type of parent from single teen moms to family planning for engaged couples. Practice Areas: - Depression - Grief and Loss - Anxiety Disorders - Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders - Specific Phobia - Trauma/ Violence/ Post Traumatic Stress Disorder/ Sexual abuse/ Rape - Incest Children - Attention Deficit Disorder/ Self-esteem / Social Issues/ Behavior Issues - Addictions / Substance Abuse - Relationships / Couples Therapy/ Divorce/ Infertility/ Infidelity and Intimacy Concerns - Parenting/ Counseling new Parents - Stress Managements/ Work related Conflicts Issue - Adolescence/ Marriage/ Family - Gender Identity Issues Office located in beautiful Brentwood neighborhood. Serving the West Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills neighborhood areas.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Los Angeles is a psychotherapy practice that specializes in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for anxiety, depression, and a whole multitude of other disorders and psychological problems. We are one of the few CBT centers in the country to use only licensed doctoral-level therapists, ensuring the highest quality of care for our clients. All of our therapists are expert in CBT, many of whom teach CBT at the graduate and post-graduate levels. At Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Los Angeles, we are proud to serve West Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, and Santa Monica. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a short-term, highly focused therapy that has been shown to be the best treatment for numerous anxiety and depression, as well as a host of other problems. Unlike traditional talk-therapy, which often focuses on early childhood, cognitive behavioral therapy is present-focused, highly goal-oriented, and active. The CBT treatment approach allows significant improvement to occur much earlier than in traditional talk therapy. As a result, cognitive behavioral therapy can help you to end treatment sooner, teaching you to become your own best resource to solve problems. Overwhelming research suggests cognitive behavioral therapy is the most effective treatment for most disorders, with numerous studies supporting CBT treatment for depression and anxiety.

In my practice the emotional healing power of empathetic understanding and relationship building meet the latest neuro scientific technology. Computerized EEG neuro feedback, advanced EMDR protocols, and hypnosis are utilized in the context of years of experience in Cognitive Behavioral and body oriented psychotherapy. Working with the mind — thinking, communicating, relating, feeling — can effect the brain in positive ways. And conversely, working with the brain — neural rhythms, connectivity and brain wave synchrony — can effect the way we think and feel. Where we start is up to you. Let’s explore the possibilities together. Call or email for a complementary telephone consultation.

We are all human, and at one point or another, yearn to feel heard and understood. Our circumstances can be an amalgamation of multiple factors, external as well as internal. Carmit is interested in getting to know and hear your experiences and help make sense of the circumstances, feelings and challenges you are going through. Having a multicultural background and being multilingual, Carmit is interested about the balance between the universality of human experience and a person's individual circumstances.

Dr. Payam Ghassemlou is currently in private practice in West Hollywood providing individual therapy. Having over twenty years of extensive training and research in the field of counseling and mental health, Dr. Payam has developed an integrative approach toward helping his patients to improve the quality of their lives. Dr. Payam also taught first-year medical students in the Doctoring 1 program at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Here, he instructed medical students on topics related to patient-centered interview, ethics and professionalism, empathy, cultural sensitivity, and developing communication skills.

Different people respond to different methods of healing. For that reason I am trained in a number of different healing modalities such as: Humanistic Psychology— This approach provides you with a safe, unconditionally accepting experience in the therapeutic relationship. In this way we work to remove any toxic shame you may be carrying from the past. This can be particularly helpful if you come from a difficult family upbringing. Many of our issues we carry are a result of negative relationship patterns from the past. Humanistic psychology does reparative work by making the therapeutic relationship as accepting, non-judgmental, and healing as possible. Mindfulness, Self-Compassion, and Inner Child Work— These tools teach you how to relate to yourself in a loving, present time, productive manner. Most of us suffer from a strong “inner critic.” With the skills of Mindfulness, Self-Compassion, and Inner Child work, you will learn to alleviate suffering generated by the self-critic and move forward. Cognitive Behavioral Work— The most commonly used type of therapy, CBT is effective for helping you move out of stagnation and into accountable action when working on achieving specific goals. Goals are set and tracked within the therapy so you are not alone in them. It is sometimes not enough to gain insight and do emotional healing in therapy, we often need to work toward concrete behavioral changes. CBT lets us do just that. Emotional Freedom Technique-- Also referred to as “tapping”, this healing modality is used specifically to reduce cortisol levels in your blood stream which will in turn ease depression and anxiety. Cortisol is the hormone released by the brain’s amygdala gland when under stress— sometimes resulting in paralyzing fears. Once cortisol levels reduce, you will often feel able to handle whatever is challenging you in a more direct, effective manner. How do you work in couples counseling? As well as being a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, I am also a Certified Imago Relationship Therapist. If you are currently experiencing issues in your romantic relationship, it is important to find a therapist who has specific couples training to help you. Imago relationship therapy is one of the most renowned therapies in treating couples. Imago therapy is based on learning effective “mirroring” communication skills, being able to hold each person’s experience in equal esteem, and making decisions in a cooperative / safe way. In the process we heal the “unfinished business of childhood” (i.e. past hurts or issues) that we transfer over from our family of origin to our adult romantic partners. As a result of this kind of healing we gain greater maturity, intimacy, and fulfillment in relationships. See the Imago Couples Therapy section of this site for more. What about life coaching? I am also a Certified Strategic Intervention Life Coach. Tony Robbins and Cloe Madanes developed this form of life coaching. The coaching is based off Mr. Robbins’ research and seminars as well as Ms. Madanes’ experience as a psychotherapist and author. Together they coined the theory of “Human Needs Psychology”. This theory states that all of our behaviors and beliefs are driven by six basic needs. When these needs are made conscious we are better equipped at fulfilling them in ways that provide optimal growth and happiness. Life coaching might best be thought of as a form of unique behavioral therapy. That is, when you stop ruminating on the reasons things are not working out, and start changing your behavior to act in accord with what you say you want, your goals can be achieved. I also run men's groups. Please inquire for more info. If you're ready to take a step toward change, contact me. I offer a free 15-minute phone consultation to see if this might be a good fit for you.