About Me
Teresa Scott, LMFT, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist providing virtual services throughout California and in-person services for Berkeley, Stanford, Portola Valley, and the entire Bay Area at her Palo Alto office. Contact Teri.
I completed my undergraduate studies at UC Davis, then moved to the San Francisco Bay Area to complete a graduate degree in Fine Arts at the San Francisco Art Institute, followed by a teaching credential at California State University, Sacramento. I worked as a teacher for 20 years in public and private schools in San Francisco and Portola Valley, CA. In 2014, I changed my career, pursued my second Master's Degree in Psychology, and in 2017 became a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.
My interest in the intersection of art, science, relationships, and spirituality is what pushes me to continue to grow as a therapist. artist, and educator, and to further understand the unconscious in relation to the transformation and creativity of the mind and heart. During my training as a therapist, I worked in a variety of programs in the Bay Area in schools, outpatient settings, and residential programs.
As I started a part-time private practice, I continued to develop my leadership and clinical skills, working in community-based organizations. I moved into management and oversaw an Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) program. In 2021, I moved to full-time private practice providing psychotherapy to adults in California, virtually and in person. Please contact me to schedule a free 15-minute phone consultation.
Why I became an ISTDP therapist.
When I first learned about ISTDP in 2005, I knew it would be my specialty. I have not found any other modality that helps clients more rapidly, more clearly, more concretely, or more completely. I find ISTDP to be brilliant, and its results are amazing. That’s why I’m an ISTDP therapist.
ISTDP provides the clearest conceptualization of the therapeutic task and operates in a collaborative way. Together, my clients and I focus on helping them understand their anxiety, defenses, and emotions, and we address the relationships in their lives in a manner that helps them make lasting changes.
I have trained with some of the leading teachers of ISTDP, which is a form of Experiential Dynamic Therapy (EDT). I completed my certified core training from the International Experiential Dynamic Therapy Association (IEDTA) with Dr. John Rathauser and Dr. David Wolff. I have studied with Jon Frederickson, Dr. Allan Abbass, Dr. Patricia Coughlin, and Dr. Jonathan Entis and have attended two immersion training with Habib Davanloo, the developer of ISTDP, in Montreal. I continue to receive consultation and support from leaders in the field. I am currently in an Advanced Core Training with John Rathauser, PhD and Jonathan Entis, PhD.
My offer to you.
You will receive my utmost attention, care, and guidance in our work together to help you with the problems you bring to me for help.
ISTDP therapy is a transformative therapeutic approach that facilitates swift emotional relief, symptom reduction, and profound self-understanding. The key to rapid therapeutic progress lies in addressing the unconscious resistances -both conscious and unconscious -that impede individuals from confronting their true emotions and the root causes of their symptoms.
Unlike conventional therapies, ISTDP actively engages these resistances, enabling patients to overcome internal barriers and unlock their inherent emotional strengths. By focusing on the dynamic interplay between unconscious emotional conflicts and defense mechanisms, this therapy empowers individuals to experience and process previously avoided feelings, leading to profound healing and self-awareness.