Judith Linzer,PhD

Judith Linzer,PhD

Professions: Psychotherapist
License Status: I'm a licensed professional.
Primary Credential: Psychologist - Psy 9833
Billing and Insurance:
to ask this therapist for billing and insurance information.

Offices

20200 Redwood Road Suite 2
Castro Valley, CA 94546
Castro Valley, California 94546

My Approach to Helping

I am very approachable, informal, careful with people's feelings and work well with those who are new or hesitant to come to psychotherapy because they are unaccustomed to the "culture" of psychotherapy, fearful of being judged or not "doing it right" (i.e. ethnic minority, working class background, new immigrant, men whose wives are "making them go" or alternative lifestyle). I work well with people who might feel that their problems will be too much to disclose, to handle, be resolved, feeling vulnerable/fragile. I am very patient and kind but I will not let you off the hook if I think you can do it. I do a kind of therapy that helps people understand and resolve deep seated long standing problems that get in the way of feeling good about yourself and feeling satisfied with your close relationships.

For many years, I have worked with "high conflict" families (of divorce) and when I see people in conflicted relationships, I work hard to understand everyone's point of view (and their pain) and strive for everyone to feel heard and for people to be able to be as comfortable as possible in situations that are very uncomfortable and may appear unresolvable. I do not shy away from strong emotional states (i.e. anger, terror, trauma) and am highly trained to assist patients in going inward as deeply as they want and need to go. I also have a way of making people laugh in the midst of all this pain, hopefully without feeling that I am making light of their pain. Patients often tell me that I am funny (and sometimes they are too) and that I have a heart.

More Info About My Practice

I primarily do fee for service work (no insurance) except for MHN. If your insurance will reimburse you for seeing me, I will give you a bill to submit to your insurance for you to get reimbursed.

I have been a licensed psychologist since 1987 (almost 27 years)and have been doing psychotherapy since 1979 (over 34 years). I have supervised psychology graduate students for many years as they begin the process of learning how to become psychotherapists (which can be scary)and am gentle with them as well. I enjoy doing psychotherapy with those interns and with licensed psychotherapists (who may also need to see a psychotherapist).

My philosophy is that we are all humans together (in this difficult situation called "life") and that I am not better or different than anyone else, but that when I am in the "role" of psychotherapist (or court ordered evaluator), I strive to keep my humanity, humility, kindness and sense of humor while being able to willingly take on the privilege and responsibility of being the one that people can rely on, trust and express your true self without judgment. I believe that the more a psychotherapist has done self work and understands oneself, that the more that therapist is capable of helping and understanding others. A good therapist can be open and vulnerable yet hold firm boundaries (i.e. you feel like you are talking to a "real" person but that person does not talk about herself). Although some people think that revealing and exploring strong feelings is a weakness, actually the opposite is true. The more one can tolerate and understand oneself, the stronger and healthier you actually are. Therapy begins with a short phone call and we decide if it makes sense to schedule a first appointment. After that, you decide if you want a second one and then we see how it goes.

My Therapy Focus

Some cognitive behavioral therapies (like DBT) incorporate mindfulness (which is really meditation) as part of the psychotherapy. My knowledge of "mindfulness" is due to direct contact over many years with Buddhist meditation and not because of cognitive behavioral training but the source is the same (Buddhist meditation). So although my training is primarily psychoanalytic, as it turns out, my approach does incorporate many aspects of cognitive therapy (except I call it "Buddhism"). Although people think of Buddhism as a "religion" (which it is), it actually has much in common with Western psychology and is very compatible with people who hold monotheistic beliefs (i.e. like Christians, Jews and Muslims). I have a background in religious studies and work with people who define themselves as either spiritual and/or religious. Some people don't think of themselves that way at all, but if you are concerned with issues around morality, ethics, good and evil, integrity, hope, you are addressing those "religious" issues without calling it that. My interest in all of this is how to apply it on the practical level (i.e. your everyday life) and how to make your life better. Psychotherapy does not impose any particular belief system on another. On the contrary, psychotherapy teaches you to think for yourself, trust yourself, get closer to yourself and become the person you feel you were meant to be.

Services I Provide

Ages I Work With

  • Children
  • Teens
  • Adults
  • Elders

Languages

  • English

Groups I Work With

    Families of divorce as a family court ordered child custody evaluator (an investigator who assists the judge in making court orders related to child custody), family court ordered "reconnection/reunification" therapist for children with a parent (when a child becomes estranged from a parent post divorce and the court orders the child to be seen with that estranged parent in a psychotherapists office to help mend the relationship) or family court ordered co-parent counseling (psychotherapy for the divorced parents to work together to parent the child) and other roles played by mental health professionals within the Family Court system.

    Alternative relationship structures (i.e. poly families), sexual minorities, gender non-conforming children (i.e. transgendered), gender non-conforming teens and adults and their partners.

    Meditators and those wanting to integrate their spiritual/religious practice/beliefs with their emotional and everyday lives/issues.

Client Concerns I Treat

  • Abandonment
  • Abuse / Abuse Survivor Issues
  • Addictions and Compulsions
  • Adjusting to Change / Life Transitions
  • Adoption / Reunion Issues
  • Aging and Geriatric Issues
  • Agoraphobia
  • Anger
  • Anxiety
  • Attachment Issues
  • Blended Family Issues
  • Body Image
  • Breakup
  • Caregiver Issues / Stress
  • Child and/or Adolescent Issues
  • Chronic Illness / Disability
  • Chronic Pain
  • Codependency / Dependency
  • Communication Problems
  • Compulsive Spending / Shopping
  • Creative Blocks
  • Depression
  • Disability
  • Divorce / Divorce Adjustment
  • Eating and Food Issues
  • Emotional Abuse
  • Emotional Intelligence
  • Emptiness
  • Family of Origin Issues
  • Family Problems
  • Fear
  • Forgiveness
  • Grief, Loss, and Bereavement
  • Health / Illness / Medical Issues
  • HIV / AIDS
  • Hoarding
  • Identity Issues
  • Individuation
  • Infidelity / Affair Recovery
  • Isolation
  • Jealousy
  • LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender) Issues
  • Life Purpose / Meaning / Inner-Guidance
  • Men's Issues
  • Multicultural Concerns
  • Obsessions and Compulsions (OCD)
  • Oppositional and Defiant Behavior in Children and Teen
  • Other - Not Listed Here
  • Panic
  • Parenting
  • Polyamory / Nonmonogamous Relationships
  • Posttraumatic Stress / Trauma
  • Power
  • Pre-Marital Counseling
  • Prejudice / Discrimination
  • Rejection
  • Relationships and Marriage
  • Religious Issues
  • Self-Actualization
  • Self-Care
  • Self-Compassion
  • Self-Confidence
  • Self-Criticism
  • Self-Doubt
  • Self-Esteem
  • Self-Love
  • Sensitivity to Criticism
  • Sex Addiction
  • Sexual Assault / Abuse
  • Sexuality / Sex Therapy
  • Shame
  • Social Anxiety / Phobia
  • Spirituality
  • Stress
  • Trust Issues
  • Values Clarification
  • Women's Issues
  • Workplace Issues
  • Worry
  • Worthlessness
  • Young Adult Issues

Types of Therapy

  • Conflict Resolution Therapy
  • Family Systems Therapy
  • Filial Therapy
  • Humanistic Psychology (humanism)
  • Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT)
  • Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
  • Object Relations
  • Parent Work
  • Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT)
  • Play Therapy
  • Psychodynamic
  • Relational Psychotherapy
  • Self Psychology
  • Self-Relations Therapy
  • Transpersonal Psychotherapy

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