Megan Cser Smith, Ph.D.

I offer different approaches to therapy depending on each client’s concerns and objectives.

Psychodynamic Psychotherapy is a type of therapy used to help clients change ineffective patterns of living and relating to others. In psychodynamic psychotherapy, I help clients to identify ways in which their early experiences and relationships impact the way they approach their lives and to identify and change unhelpful patterns. I may also share my reactions with clients and clients are encouraged to share their own reactions. This authenticity helps clients to better understand themselves and others, and to relate to others in new ways.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is a specific type of cognitive behavioral therapy used to help people recover from insomnia. Insomnia includes difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, and/or awakening too early with difficulty returning to sleep. In CBT-I, I guide clients through tracking their sleep, learning strategies, and designing and following a plan to help them to improve the quality and duration of their sleep.

Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) is a specific type of cognitive behavioral therapy used to help people recover from PTSD and trauma- and stressor-related disorders. In CPT, clients learn how to identify, examine, and alter trauma-focused beliefs that are not fully accurate and prevent recovery. I also help clients to process their feelings about the trauma so that they can lessen the impact of the trauma on their present and future life and relationships. In the final stage of CPT, clients examine their experiences and beliefs related to five themes – safety, trust, power/control, esteem, and intimacy – and continue to use the strategies learned in CPT to enhance their recovery. 

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Skills involves learning and practicing skills that were developed as part of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), which is a cognitive behavioral therapy developed by Marsha Linehan, Ph.D. Through DBT Skills, I help clients to enhance their abilities in mindfulness, distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness. If upon assessment I determine that DBT would be more appropriate than DBT Skills, I would provide referrals. (DBT is an intensive program, which includes, but is not limited to, weekly individual therapy, weekly group skills training, skills coaching, and weekly consultation among DBT therapists.)