About Me
Licensed Clinical Psychologist (PSY33326)
Benjamin Steinman, Psy.D
I am licensed in California by the Board of Psychology as a clinical psychologist and specialize in adult psychotherapy, psychological assessment, and clinical consultation. Therapy doesn’t have to be a mysterious, confusing, or overwhelming experience. I believe it should be a collaborative and transparent process that highlights the many avenues for change, healing, and growth. I am fascinated by motivation and readiness for change, and how to effectively navigate barriers to achieve goals. We all have our own unique style for learning, processing, and overcoming; it is my goal to find out how to best serve you. As a therapist, I am driven by curiosity, empathy, compassion, genuineness and a desire to truly understand the reality behind your day to day life and how your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors influence your mood, goals, values, and relationships.
Training, background, and therapeutic approaches.
My background in research and psychotherapy provides me with the skills necessary to offer a variety of different therapeutic approaches, each of which incorporates evidence-based treatments while relying on collaborative feedback to best address client needs and desires. During my career I have received training in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Psychodynamic Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Narrative Therapy, Relational Therapy, Humanistic Therapy, and Mindfulness-Based Psychotherapy (MBCT). Through an integrative practice, I help individuals select their path for change while helping develop and strengthen meaningful, relevant, and practical skills to identify values, attain goals, and improve your overall quality of life.
A little more about me
Compassion, respect, and curiosity have always come naturally to me. In middle school I developed a deep curiosity and respect for mental health and the complex nature of the human experience. Motivation for change, the interaction between mental and physical health, and how our perceptions and responses to stress has always amazed me. Originally from Los Angeles, I moved to the Bay Area to attend the University of California, Davis (UCD), where I earned my Bachelor of Science in psychobiology while working as a peer counselor for UC Davis’s counseling and psychological services center. After graduating, I worked as a life skills trainer for a rehabilitation program for adults with traumatic brain injury, and later as a behavioral interventionist providing applied behavioral analysis for children on the autism spectrum. Afterwards, I attended the Wright Institute where I received my Master of Arts in clinical psychology and later my doctorate in clinical psychology. In my graduate program I rotated practicum sites annually and have worked in a number of clinical settings including: community mental health clinics, high school and middle school mental health programs, Napa State Hospital, West County Health Center, and Kaiser Permanente. After many years as a clinician, I have found that therapy provides a unique opportunity to get an objective opinion from a third party who truly has your best interest at heart. Therapy people with the opportunity to slow down from their fast paced lives and genuinely consider the interactions we have internally, externally, and between ourselves and others, how we act, why we act and. Through empathic listening and curiosity, I aim to create a safe environment where individuals can grow through insight, practical skills, and improve their overall lives.
Consider your readiness for change
Don’t walk blindly into therapy. Think about where you are, what paths are available, and what you think the best style is for you.
Am I ready for change? Is it safe? What would change look like? How do I change?
Structured
I keep things grounded by relying on standardized psychological measures, primarily goal focused treatment plans, progress tracking, and goal oriented work that is highly solutions focused. Example: I have anxiety, what feeds my anxiety, what skills can I use to overcome my anxiety, how will I know when my anxiety has improved.
Therapy Style
-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
-Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
Semi-structured
A hybrid of defined and flexible goals, closed and open ended questions, well rounded conversations where we pay attention to things both previously discussed and also overlooked.
Therapy Style
-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
-Insight Oriented Therapy
-Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
-Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
-Narrative Therapy
-Psychodynamic Therayp
-Trauma Informed Therapy
Open Format
Although I always rely on standardized psychological measures to monitor progress, this can be less of the forefront of work. Some of us need time to get into the nitty gritty without being asked to dive head first into stress, trauma, shame, or chronic experiences with mental illness. An open format pushes aside “the agenda” many therapists feel the need to have and can provide a safe environment to grow into change without enabling behaviors. Open formats can sometimes provide more momentum for change by building off of successes and reminding ourselves that we are good enough.
Therapy Style
-Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
-Narrative Therapy
-Psychodynamic Therapy
-Trauma Informed Therapy