David Rose, Therapist in Silver Spring, 20910

David S. Rose, Ph.D.

Profession(s):
Psychology, Counselling
License Status:
I'm a licensed professional.
Primary License:
Psychologist (Clinical)

My Approach to Helping

Who I Work With

In my practice, I work with adults, defined as approximately age 20 and older. I work with individual clients, with couples, and with groups. In group therapy, the clients are almost always in individual therapy as well, with me, with my co-therapist, or with another therapist who has referred the client to the group.

I work with clients presenting a variety of issues, including:
Depression Relationship Issues Life Transitions
Anxiety Addictive Behaviors GLBT Issues
Anger Grief and Loss Sense of Self/Self-Esteem
Men's Issues Trauma and PTSD Partners of Abuse Survivors
Adult Children of Alcoholic/Dysfunctional/Abuse Families
Couples Issues, including Re-Marriage, Extramarital Relationships, and Step-Families

I have had experience working with diverse groups of people. I have been a consulting psychologist to an orthodox yeshiva, I have worked with Catholic seminarians, I currently teach and supervise in a largely Catholic Pastoral Counseling program, and I have taken numerous workshops in working with Gay, Bi, and Lesbian, and Questioning clients. In addition, I have been involved in Multicultural work since 2001, and seek to keep an open mind and continuously question my assumptions about people whose lives are different from mine.

I believe that psychotherapy is an interactive process that calls for both the client and the therapist to be as fully involved as possible. Therefore, I participate actively with my patients, sharing my thoughts, impressions, and reactions to what we are talking about. I believe that people can change even long-standing patterns of thought, feeling, and behavior if THEY participate actively. My job is to create a space where clients can be curious and learn about the ways of thinking, feeling, and acting that they bring to their lives, and about how these ways work for them and against them. I create this space by bringing both my professional training and understanding and my human compassion, empathy, and respect.

In my practice, I typically meet with people once a week; if there is a need for additional support, or if we decide together that more intense work is called for, meeting twice a week can be very useful. Even meeting once a week allows clients to develop enough comfort with me and with therapy for our work to be effective and helpful.
Regarding my theoretical grounding, I have intensive training in Psychodynamic, Cognitive-Behavioral, Gestalt, and Existential therapeutic approaches, and I draw from each of these as the client and clientâs situation call for. Some therapists subscribe to and identify with one school of thought and apply that way of thinking and working to every client. I first work to understand each clientâs particular issues, needs, and style of thinking and feeling. THEN, I use the approach and methods that I believe would be most useful to that patient, and remain open to using whatever else might work based on what develops. Therefore, my orientation is eclectic, and my methods are determined by the clientâs personality and needs.

More Info About My Practice

I feel it is important to let you know why I don't accept insurance assignment. First, If I did accept assignment, I'd be spending more time talking with the insurance companies that with my clients, and the energy that would take would detract from my focus on my clients. Second, it would give the insurance companies decision-making power over our therapy that I believe only you and I should have. Third, NOT accepting assignment keeps the relationship lines clear: my relationship is with you, and not with the insurance companies. Finally, not accepting assignment frees me from needing office staff, and let's me focus primarily on therapy.

Why Going to Therapy Does Not Mean You are Weak or Flawed

Therapy helps people by letting them see how their habitual ways of dealing with situations and feelings work and do not work in their lives and in their relationships. Then, they can begin trying on new ways of thinking, feeling, and relating that would work better for them. This is not a cut and dried process, but involves incremental learning about what is going on inside them and between them and others in their life.