Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy treatment is designed to relieve specific emotional or behavioral symptoms and enhance personal growth. In individual therapy with people who suffer from severe anxiety and depression, those who are struggling with important life issues such as break-up, divorce, or loss of employment. I work with couples who wish to improve their communication skills to develop more satisfying relationships, and with families in conflict.

Psychotherapy Services:

  • Psychotherapy for children and adolescents
  • Individual therapy for adults
  • Family Therapy
  • Relationship difficulties
  • Intimacy Issues in individual and couples

Psychological Assessment & Testing

A 17 year old young woman came in with her mother asking for psychological testing to see whether she had ADHD because she was having problems focusing. As a result of a through assessment and psych testing, it was clear that the girl could not focus because she had Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome and needed an antidepressant instead of ADHD meds. *

This area of my expertise is the study of the relation between brain function and behavior. Psychological testing can often help us clarify a diagnosis, especially in cases where making a diagnosis without testing has been difficult. Testing can help us uncover why a child or a teenager is having problems at school or with his or her peers. Knowing what is happening with the person helps us outline interventions to improve that person’s life. On occasion, people also request cognitive testing because they want to know their own or their child’s IQ level. Some private schools require an estimate of an IQ for admission purposes.

A 46 year old man came in with his girlfriend asking for psychological testing because their relationship has not been going well and girlfriend insisted that he should be tested to find out “what’s wrong with him?” Psychological testing revealed that he had Narcissistic Personality Disorder and had difficulties considering needs of others. *

Assessment Services:

  • Educational and Psychodiagnostic Evaluations
  • Cognitive & psychological assessments
  • IQ testing
A 15 year old young man was referred for psychological testing because in the last few years he has been diagnosed with several psychological problems and nobody could figure out what was actually happening with him. Some people around him were beginning to wonder if he was a “sociopath in the making”. One of the diagnoses given to him was ADHD and he was prescribed medications for it for several years. When psychological testing was completed, it was clear that this young man was depressed, had a lot of empathy for others, and was asking adults around him to help him manage his intense emotions that he was experiencing. And, no, he did not have ADHD, and in fact, he has not been taking meds given to him. *

* To protect confidentiality, names, personal information and details of the clinical case presented on this site have been altered. However, these examples represent many common cases that Dr. Gutkin has worked with over the years.