Calder Kaufman, PsyD

These in-depth evaluations uncover people's unique ways of thinking and feeling, their motivations, ways of coping and defending against painful emotions, and attachment and relationship patterns. This information goes beyond just an accurate diagnosis. A comprehensive picture of you is developed and a path forward outlined. 

Reports are written specifically to enhance psychotherapy effectiveness and therapist-patient rapport and gain diagnostic clarity to support psychotropic medication prescribing. Some undergo an evaluation simply because they "feel bad" and don't know why. 

I aim to make psychological testing and evaluation highly comfortable, collaborative, and informative. 

Calder is a member of the Society for Personality Assessment 

I see patients ages 16+. Therapy is based on a trusting, emotionally-responsive clinical relationship focused on what troubles you the most. It won't be effective simply because I'm a psychologist and you're a person seeking help; thus, our initial task is to spend a bit of time deciding if we're the right fit. In most cases, we will be.  From there, our work will be to address problems together so that you leave a healthier, more psychologically flexible and resilient person. 

Before meeting with any therapist, including me, I suggest reading my blog on choosing a mental health clinician. 

Being a psychotherapist is hard. There are few things more complex than the patient sitting in front of you, and we ourselves are equally complex. As a consultant, I aim to support therapists in navigating the nuance of therapy to make your clinical practice more effective and successful. 

This can involve enhancing your self-understanding and how your internal world influences that of the patient (countertransference, essentially). At other times, getting more "up to speed" in an area is required, perhaps in the case of a psychological condition you know little about. Or you might be facing a challenging ethical quandary. 

Ultimately, settling something unresolved within the therapist, clarifying a patient's difficulties (often in the form of specific personality characteristics), and identifying effective technical approaches is where we arrive.