Meet Sylvia Bercovici, Ph.D., MFT
Welcome
I received my doctorate from UCLA in anthropology, with an emphasis on cross-cultural psychology. My training as an anthropologist gives me cultural and evolutionary perspectives on human emotions and behavior.
I am a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. Extensive training in family therapy allows me to see the individual as part of a family system that is internalized and held in the nervous system of the individual, sometimes as traumatic experiences and painful memories, greatly affecting how the individual perceives him/herself cognitively, emotionally, and physically.
A current major focus of my therapy practice is developmental trauma, which I treat using the widely acknowledged method of EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). I am an Approved Consultant with the EMDR International Association.
EMDR complements and is compatible with Mindfulness Meditation in which I was trained by the University of Massachusetts’ Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction program.
I have been teaching meditation for a number of years and have led meditation retreats in the San Jacinto Mountains and in Assisi, Italy. I have taught Buddhist psychology at Antioch University and currently facilitate a Buddhist study group in Los Angeles. I have regularly traveled to Nepal and India for further study. I incorporate a contemplative perspective in my psychotherapy with both individuals and groups, as a non-religious framework for a vital and happy life.
I offer psychotherapy at my office in West Los Angeles as well as Buddhist approaches to psychological wellness. Contact me to explore whether Self Healing Mind services are right for you. At this time, I am offering the option of confidential teletherapy in place of an office appointment.
Or call 310-470-1158
Psychotherapy Services
THERAPY FOR INDIVIDUALS
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Depression
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Anxiety and panic attacks
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Major, single-incident, physical or emotional trauma
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Developmental trauma due to early abuse, neglect or deprivation
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Dysfunctional life patterns
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Life transitions (educational, work/career, marital, or age-related changes)
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Relationship issues
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Grief and loss
THERAPY FOR COUPLES AND FAMILIES
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Marital/partnership counseling
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Child-rearing issues
SPECIALIZED THERAPEUTIC MODALITIES
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EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) for the treatment of trauma. Visit http://www.emdria.org/about-emdr-therapy/
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Integrative Somatic Therapy: for trauma and emotional dysregulation (anxiety and panic).
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Meditation and Applied Buddhist Psychology: for general emotional and psychological balance and access to higher levels of functioning.
Perspectives on Self Healing
Contemporary post-industrial life has separated us from our original connections to the earth and intimate human groups—resulting, in my view, in much of our psychological and emotional symptoms and disorders.
My perspective about psychological well-being is that we were intended to be, and naturally are, whole beings. Our psychological and emotional disorders and dysfunctions are overlays that obscure our natural state. The mind/body systems are designed to regulate and heal themselves—if they receive the right promptings. From ancient sources of wisdom to the most recent knowledge in neuroscience, we are discovering the tremendous powers of the human mind, particularly that of the mind's capacity to heal itself.
Additionally, I have come to understand the importance of including the body in any kind of psychological and emotional healing. It is now universally understood that the mind and body form a continuum and that they cannot be separated from each other. And what is of equal importance is that each individual can learn how to access and work with their brain/body experiences in order to regulate and heal negative emotional patterns and trauma.
In sum: as an anthropologist, psychotherapist, and meditator, I have studied this self-healing mind over the years, and I am able to offer various modalities that enhance its potential. These include individual therapy, EMDR, integrated body therapy, and Buddhist meditation.