Preeya Desai, Ph.D.
Licensed Clinical Psychologist
Brooklyn Heights + Virtual
I believe that everyone can benefit from therapy, whether you find yourself in acute crisis in the present or wish to understand yourself and your patterns on a deeper level. Therapy allows a safe space where you can explore, process, and reflect on your emotions, relationships both with yourself and those close to you, and past experiences in a way that reduces distress and promotes increased self-awareness. As a therapist, I find importance in developing the therapeutic relationship in order to ensure that you have a safe space in which to navigate life challenges, mood changes, trauma, loss, etc. Accordingly, I maintain a highly collaborative, genuine, and empathic stance in treatment that allows us to develop treatment goals together and move through therapy at a pace that works for you.
Although my treatment orientation is primarily psychodynamic and relational, an important part of my therapeutic process is meeting patients where they are. Therefore, I integrate various treatment modalities in therapy to tailor treatment to your individual goals and needs. I aim to help patients understand the effect of past experiences and relationships on their current functioning and interpersonal patterns. However, I also work to provide patients with tools and techniques that allow for more targeted symptom relief. I have experience conducting Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), evidenced-based trauma focused treatment such as Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), short-term treatment, and mindfulness-based treatment.
I have worked with adults with diverse histories who have experienced trauma, anxiety, depression, health-related mood disturbances, and relationship difficulties. I welcome patients of all backgrounds, race/ethnicities, sexual orientation, and religions. In treatment, I aim create an accepting space in which I can work to understand patients’ individual connection to their identities and the way this may affect their current functioning.
In addition to individual therapy, I provide psychological testing to adults, adolescents, and children. Testing can be helpful to better understand the way you function cognitively and emotionally, provide diagnostic clarification, and potentially aid in determining academic/test accommodations.
Training
I received my Bachelor of Arts with a major in Psychology from Barnard College. I earned my Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Long Island University -Brooklyn. Throughout my training, I worked in a variety of clinical settings including the Bank Street School for Children, the LIU-Brooklyn Psychological Services Center, Gouverneur Hospital (NYCHHC), and the Brooklyn VA. I completed my pre-doctoral internship at the New York Harbor VA Healthcare System-Manhattan Campus.