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EXPERT WITNESS:  Grief and Loss.      Contact me for fee schedule and list of cases.


BLOG:                     DrGwenF.blogspot.com     I welcome your comments.

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EDUCATION:

       My education was and continues to be focused on psychology, counseling psychology, human sexuality, grief counseling, theology and interfaith counseling.  I am a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (Lic. #47627) and I am trained as a psychodynamic psychotherapist, which is informed by Attachment Theory and Existentialism. I practice within the scope of a marriage and family therapist (which includes invidual, couples, and group therapy), with specializations in trauma and dissociation, grief and loss counseling, hypnosis, and spiritual counseling. I have advanced training in human sexuality.  I possess all the necessary certifications and 35+ years of experience to assert my expertise in these areas. 

       

 PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

      I discovered hypnosis when I was still in high school and it fascinated me.  Fast forward several years, while I was the Executive Director of a rape crisis center (which I co-founded,) I used hypnosis to help sexual assault victims prepare for the harrowing ordeal of prosecuting rapists.  Hooked on hypnosis, I've been using it to help clients for the past 30+ years. 

      I worked for 35+ years in the non-profit sector, variously as an executive director, a therapist, a psychiatric social worker, and a chaplain. I worked as a mental health therapist in multiple qualified settings: a foster care agency, three hospices, a locked facility for the chronically mentally ill, a domestic violence shelter, and a couple of community counseling centers. I was the director of a gang-avoidance program for at-risk middle-school girls, led a Girl Scout troop in a shelter for homeless families, and taught Values Clarification to junior high kids.  In short, my life has revolved around helping others manifest their potential.  This is the work that gives meaning and purpose to the days of my life.


LICENSES, DEGREES and CERTIFICATIONS:

  • Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT #47627))
  • Ph.D., Pastoral Ministry, with a Specialization in Interfaith Chaplaincy (Counseling)
  • M.A., Psychology, with an Emphasis on Marital and Family Therapy
  • Continuing-education focus:  grief, loss, trauma, dissociation, and depression
  • Certified Thanatologist (death, dying, and bereavement) 
  • Certified Consulting Hypnotist
  • Certified Parent Educator (#200607210022), Specializing in difficult-to-parent children
  • Ordained Interfaith Minister


FEES: 

All services for therapy or counseling can be adjusted, based on financial need.  I want you to be able to get the help you need, so call me.  Be honest with me and we will find a mutually acceptable amount that allows you to get the help you want.      


VERIFICATION OF CREDENTIALS:  click site and type "Gwen A. Finestone, Ph.D."

  • The Therapy Directory                                                      www.PsychologyToday.com
  • Therapist Finder--Ca. Asso. of MFTs                                      www.TherapistFinder.com 
  • Board of Behavioral Sciences (licensing)                                       http://www.bbs.ca.gov
  • Spiritual Directors International:                                        http://SDIworld.org/home.html
  • National Guild of Hypnotists:                                                                     www.ngh.net
  • Association of Death Education and Counseling:                                 www.adec.org
  • International Society for the Study of Trauma & Dissociation                     www.isst-d.org
  • The Parent Project                                                                  www.parentproject.com
  • For publicprofile,visit:                                                                      www.linkedin.com
  • ALM Experts (Expert Witnesses/Legal/Forensic):  

http://ALMexperts.com/expertsbio/Gwen-Finestone-MFT,Phd,-MA-/15746

                                     _______________________________________________

                                  Change your attitude and change your life.

                   Dr. Gwen Finestone, MFT, PhD, CT                  (714) 658-7488                

DrGwenF@yahoo.com                                       DrGwenF.blogspot.com

www.EroticMinorities.vpweb.com                    www.MultiplePersonalities.vpweb.com