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All psychotherapies are not created equal. Also known as “talk therapy,” some types of psychotherapy have been demonstrated scientifically to be more effective than others. Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy is an advanced form of rapid psychotherapy and has been clearly demonstrated to enjoy advantages few other therapies can approach.

Cognitive behavioral therapy is a type of psychotherapy used to treat psychological and psychiatric disorders. It is based on the idea that the patient's unhealthy behavior is the result of distorted thinking, rather than external situations or other people.

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, commonly known as ADHD, is chronic disorder that includes symptoms of inattentiveness, hyperactivity, and impulsive behavior. ADHD is commonly diagnosed in young children, however, many people continue to suffer from this condition as adults. Adult ADHD is typically more subtle and harder to diagnose, but affects many adults that were diagnosed as children. Most adults with ADHD had ADHD as children, even if it was never diagnosed. Some people with ADHD have fewer symptoms as they get older, while others continue to have significant symptoms as adults.

Anger management is the process of learning to recognize the signs of one's own encroaching anger and mastering techniques to deal with it safely and effectively. While anger is a normal, healthy emotion, in many people it becomes excessive and out of control, resulting in damaged relationships, employment difficulties, and even physical violence. Uncontrolled anger not only causes disharmony and pain, it is a frequent cause of criminal behavior. In recent years, there has been increasing recognition of how widespread issues with anger are and how greatly they affect the world around us. This has resulted in the development of various anger management techniques designed to channel anger in constructive ways.

Now that the deep connection between physical health and emotional well-being has been established, stress management is recognized as an important component of daily life. Reducing stress has been found to improve relationships and personal satisfaction, and make students and employees more efficient. In order for successful stress management to take place, a stress assessment must be completed, designed to evaluate a patient's stress level and to highlight any areas of concern. These results are used to devise a customized treatment plan that provides patients with a variety of techniques to alleviate stress and increase comfort, energy level and productivity.

If you struggle to fall asleep at night or feel tired throughout the day, you are not alone. Sleep disorders affect one in three people at some point of their lives, and about half of all adults over the age of 65. From insomnia to sleep apnea, an estimated 50 million Americans suffer from some type of sleeping disorder.

Social anxiety disorder, also known as social phobia, is a common anxiety disorder that affects many people. People with social anxiety have excessive and unreasonable fears before and during different social situations. With a social anxiety disorder, normal, everyday interactions may cause feelings of anxiety, nervousness, self-consciousness and embarrassment. Individuals who suffer from social phobia may avoid certain social situations because of the overwhelming fear and anxiety that these situations may cause. The anxiety and emotional discomfort caused by a social anxiety disorder may interfere with daily routines, relationships, school or employment.

A binge eating disorder is an eating disorder where people consume unusually large amounts of food in one sitting. Many people who are binge eaters feel a lack of control over their eating and may feel extremely depressed and guilty after a binge eating episode. Binge eaters may be overweight or obese, but can also be of normal weight. Binge eaters are twice as likely to be women than men. There is no specific cause for binge eating but it may be a result of family history, biological factors, long-term dieting and psychological issues. Binge eating may be caused by depression or anxiety or may be the result of painful childhood experiences or family problems.

Post-Traumatic Stress disorder, or PTSD, is a psychiatric condition triggered by a traumatic event during which great physical harm occurs or is threatened. While almost everyone experiences trauma at one time or another, for most people the feelings of terror and helplessness subside over time. For patients with PTSD, symptoms may appear later, last longer and be much more severe than for the average person. There are many reasons an individual may develop PTSD, none of them under the individual's control.

Dissociative disorders are characterized by a sense of disconnection from oneself or from certain memories or experiences. Such disorders are believed to be the result of traumatic experience. The sense of being walled off from the trauma is considered to be a coping mechanism to keep extremely painful memories at bay.

Seasonal affective disorder, also known as SAD, is a depressive disorder that occurs in accordance with the seasons. Most people with seasonal affective disorder experience symptoms in the fall and winter seasons. More rarely, patients experience this condition during the spring and summer. It is important to seek medical attention for this condition not only to maintain mood stability, but to prevent symptoms from worsening.

In recent decades, various types of grief counseling have been developed to help individuals cope with the intense and complicated pain involved in losing a loved one. It has been accepted that loss involves many emotions which must be dealt with before the bereaved individual can successfully move on and adapt to the changes wrought by the death. For many people, assistance in the form of grief counseling is a necessary part of the process. Grief counselors, trained in the discipline, may be clergy, psychiatric nurses, physician assistants (PAs), psychologists, nurse practitioners, social workers, or psychiatrists.

Depression, is a medical condition that causes extreme feelings of sadness and emptiness. People who suffer from depression may lose interest in activities they once enjoyed and experience a constant feeling of hopelessness on a daily basis. Depression, also known as clinical or major depression, may be triggered by certain events or occur along with other illnesses. Severe depression can interfere with a person's ability to work, sleep, eat, interact with others or enjoy life. With treatment, however, depression can become a manageable condition.

Postpartum depression is a common condition that affects an estimated 10 percent of new mothers, causing symptoms of sadness and anxiety during this new and often overwhelming experience. This condition often develops as a result of the physical, emotional, hormonal and life changes that take place after childbirth and as a woman adjusts to motherhood.

A phobia is a psychiatric disorder in which the patient suffers a lasting, irrational fear precipitated by a harmless object or situation. A patient with a phobia experiences intense anxiety upon exposure to the trigger and may experience anticipatory anxiety as well. Patients with phobias may be aware that their fear is irrational, but may nonetheless find it overwhelming or even disabling. Phobias which develop in childhood, such as a fear of bees or of thunder, are frequently outgrown, while phobias that develop in adulthood may be longer lasting. Nonetheless, about one-fifth of all phobias resolve without treatment.

Substance abuse is the excessive use of a drug or substance, despite the harmful consequences that may occur. Individuals that abuse certain drugs or substances become addicted to these substances and cannot control their ability to resist the intense urges to take them. This abuse can affect a person's physical health and personal or social functioning. Substance abuse can include regular, excessive, compulsive drinking of alcohol, and/or the habitual use of illegal or prescription drugs or other harmful substances. Substance abuse is a serious and dangerous condition that affects millions of people in the United States each year. Severe substance abuse can destroy relationships, end careers, and lead to stroke, heart disease, brain...

Generalized anxiety disorder, or GAD, is a psychiatric problem in which anxiety is not a temporary state but a chronic condition. While it is normal for all individuals to worry about an upcoming event such as an examination or job interview, patients with GAD are in a perpetual state of anxiety, unable to relax. The disorder may become so severe that it interferes with school, work or relationships. GAD is a very common disorder, affecting millions of individuals in the United States alone. More than twice as many women as men suffer from the disorder.

Insomnia is a sleep disorder that involves difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep, sometimes both. Although most people suffer an occasional sleepless night, patients with insomnia have difficulty sleeping on a regular basis. This condition affects approximately 1 in 10 people in the United States and can lead to other troubling symptoms, such as fatigue, low energy level, and a weakened immune system. While insomnia is not normally considered a serious medical disorder, it can make life difficult, or even unmanageable.

Problems in these areas are characterized by difficulties in relationships, self-defeating behavior, conflict avoidance, problems with intimacy and closeness, problems dealing with feelings in a productive fashion, and other "personality" problems that prevent one from reaching one's full potential and satisfaction in life. Dr. Kassir is specially trained to help bring about resolution of these problems using techniques such as Intensive Short-Term Dynamic Psychotherapy..

Dr. Kassir offers the option of telemedicine meetings to all patients. Telemedicine is a secure online videoconference during which Dr. Kassir can provide medical evaluation and management as well as psychotherapy ("talk therapy"). Patients can join a telemedicine meeting using a computer, tablet, or smartphone from any location. Whether meeting face-to-face or by telemedicine, Dr. Kassir can provide the full range of psychiatric services.

Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder in which patients suffer from sudden and unexplained attacks of extreme fear and loss of physical and psychological control. They may feel in terrible danger of overwhelming embarrassment or death. Panic attacks are sometimes precipitated by an anxiety-producing event, but often seem to occur without any provocation and are all the more terrifying for that reason.

Bipolar disorder, previously known as manic-depressive illness, is a complex psychiatric disorder that involves sudden and dramatic mood swings between mania and depression. An episode may last for hours, days, weeks or months and symptoms may be severe, sometimes resulting in dangerously impulsive or self-destructive behavior and sometimes leading to depression so deep it results in suicide.

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a common anxiety disorder involving disturbing repetitive thoughts and rituals designed to try to alleviate such thoughts. The thoughts are obsessions; the rituals are compulsions. OCD affects millions of people and may be associated with other types of psychiatric disorders.