The Center for Compassionate Behavior Therapy
Life can be difficult sometimes. At The Center for Compassionate Behavior Therapy, we believe that everyone can benefit from understanding the ways in which we might contribute to our own suffering and the skills to alleviate such suffering. At The Center for Compassionate Behavior Therapy, we specialize in providing high quality evidence-based treatment of anxiety and mood disorders in children, teens and adults. All therapists at the center are extensively trained in cognitive behavioral therapies. Cognitive behavioral therapy is a term that represents a number of therapies that are grounded in scientific research. Further, each of our therapists appreciate the uniqueness of each individual and tailor treatment accordingly. We believe that a strong therapeutic relationship is at the heart of all successful therapy cases. We prioritize collaboration, compassion, mindfulness, and goal-orientation in the service of helping people identify and change ineffective patterns of coping, to live a more full and valued life. The primary approaches utilized at the center include:
ACCEPTANCE & COMMITMENT THERAPY (ACT)
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy is an empirically based psychological intervention that helps people change ineffective or harmful patterns of behavior and thought utilizing acceptance, mindfulness, and behavior change strategies to increase psychological flexibility and build a meaningful life. It has been widely studied and has a strong evidence base for the treatment of anxiety and depression, as well as many other problems.
COMPASSION FOCUSED THERAPY
(CFT)
Compassion Focused Therapy is an evidence based therapy that is rooted in an evolutionary, functional analysis of social motivation and emotional systems. In CFT, it is hypothesized that people with high levels of shame and self-criticism, in whom the ‘threat detection’ system dominates, have difficulty accessing emotion regulation systems that promote feelings of safeness, security, and soothing. The treatment therefore highlights the importance of developing an individual’s capacity to cultivate inner compassion as a way of offsetting the problematic behaviors of our tricky brains.
COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY (CBT)
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is goal-oriented, skills-based treatment that focuses on helping individuals identify negative thinking patterns and apply new skills to change one’s belief in these thoughts and alter how these thoughts influence behaviors. This may involve direct cognitive interventions, relaxation strategies, exposure therapy, and more. CBT has a plethora of research establishing its effectiveness for a wide array of mental health problems.
EXPOSURE THERAPY
Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) is the gold standard treatment for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders. Indeed, exposure is often included in the treatment of all anxiety disorders. When people are fearful of something, they tend to avoid the feared objects, activities, situations, or inner experiences. Although this avoidance may help reduce feelings of fear in the short term, over the long term it can make the fear worse. Thus, exposure therapies involve breaking the pattern of avoidance and fear by creating a safe environment in which to “expose” individuals to the things they fear.
Meet the Team
Cristin Pontillo, Psy.D.
Staff Psychologist
Bio coming
Victoria Brady, Psy.D.
Founding Director, Clinical Psychologist
Victoria Brady, Psy.D. is the Founding Director of The Center for Compassionate Behavior Therapy. She is a licensed clinical psychologist practicing in Manhattan and North Jersey. Dr. Brady specializes in evidence-based therapies for adolescents and adults. She has extensive experience treating anxiety and mood disorders and also has specialized training in exposure therapies for obsessive-compulsive disorders and trauma. Dr. Brady has advanced training and experience in CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy), CFT (Compassion Focused Therapy), ERP (Exposure and Response Prevention), and Prolonged Exposure for trauma.
Dr. Brady received her doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology from LaSalle University. After receiving her degree she served as an Attending Psychologist in the Substance Abuse Treatment Program at Montefiore Medical Center, the University Hospital for Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She later served as a Staff Psychologist at Metropolitan Center for CBT and as an Adjunct Supervisor in the Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology at Yeshiva University. She is currently an Associated Faculty Member in the Department of Advanced Studies in Psychology at Kean University.
Mary Brereton, LCSW
Staff Therapist
Mary Brereton is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, she earned a Bachelor of Science Degree from Fordham University and a Masters Degree in Social Work from Rutgers University. She is a dedicated therapist with experience across various levels of care, from inpatient and outpatient hospital psychiatry to day treatment programs for high school students. She has worked with adults, families, and adolescents, providing evidence-based, quality care. She utilizes the therapeutic approaches of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Mindfulness-based therapy, to support her clients through life’s challenges.
CONTACT US
421 Essex Street, 2nd Fl
Millburn, NJ 07041
&
942 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10021
(917) 471-2182
