Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Dr. Laura Faiwiszewski, specializes in depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, trauma, insomnia, and chronic pain. She also works with individuals experiencing executive stress, and with those wanting to improve motivation, self-compassion, and overall behavior change. Dr. Faiwiszewski works collaboratively with her clients to create an individualized approach to therapy, drawing from her training in cognitive behavioral modalities, acceptance and commitment therapy, motivational interviewing, mindfulness, hypnosis, and other evidence-based approaches. She approaches her work holistically, focusing on treating the whole person, and helping clients lead a values-consistent life.
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Dr. Laura Faiwiszewski is a Clinical Psychologist who specializes in working with teens and adults that struggle with issues related to depression, anxiety, trauma, eating disorders, self-compassion, and chronic health issues including chronic pain and insomnia. Her interest in the field of psychology began when she spent a year abroad, volunteering in a children’s home. She then pursued her undergraduate degree in psychology at Rutgers University. In the following year, she worked full time as a personal trainer, which ignited her passion in the mind-body connection, and how it can be used to help people live fulfilling lives.
Dr. Faiwiszewski earned her Masters in Educational Psychology and her Doctorate of Psychology in Combined Clinical and School Psychology from Kean University. Throughout her doctoral training, she was trained in different approaches, including CBT, ACT, and psychoanalytic and psychodynamic theory. She completed a year of training in the school system (middle school and high school), conducting assessments and individual therapy. In the following year, she trained at Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation, conducting neuropsychological evaluations and provided short-term therapy while collaborating with an interdisciplinary team. She also gained experience in the treatment of eating disorders at Mount Sinai’s Eating and Weight Disorder Program.
Dr. Faiwiszewski completed her pre-doctoral internship at the Northport VA Medical Center in New York. She received generalist training, with rotations in neuropsychological evaluation, community mental health, substance abuse treatment, Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMH-I), health promotion and disease prevention (HPDP), and the treatment of acute and chronic PTSD. She stayed another year for her postdoctoral fellowship, which had an emphasis in Health Psychology, and treated individuals with chronic pain, insomnia, weight management, overall wellness, and general mental health. She facilitated both group and individual therapy, as well as short and long-term therapy. During her postdoctoral fellowship, Dr. Faiwiszewski also completed her certification in Motivational Interviewing, and received extensive training in Mindfulness for Stress Reduction. Her training experiences resulted in the development of her therapeutic style, which draws on acceptance-based and cognitive behavioral approaches, infused with humor and genuineness, in treating the whole person.
Dr. Faiwiszewski’s holistic approach to training stems from her varied training experiences during and after her graduate program. She takes a directive approach, drawing mainly from acceptance-based and cognitive behavioral modalities, while integrating psychodynamic techniques, mindfulness, and hypnosis. Dr. Faiwiszewski began utilizing eastern philosophy and approaches in her work after her extensive training in mindfulness through her graduate program and two years of training at Northport VA Medical Center, and has gone to Nepal to study Buddhism and meditation at a Tibetan Monastery. She draws on her experience in mindfulness and meditation and training in hypnosis and evidence-based therapies to help individuals experiencing chronic health issues, anxiety, depression, trauma, and OCD to get back to living a values-driven life.
Dr. Faiwiszewski’s style is warm and friendly, and often approaches her work with clients with humor. She utilizes a directive style in line with CBT, providing feedback and offering actionable advice, and explaining to clients the relationship between one’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, and how if we can change one aspect in that relationship, we can promote change in others. She also uses acceptance-based approaches, such as ACT, to foster the acceptance of unpleasant thoughts or emotional experiences, instead of fighting against them, in the service of living a more values-consistent life. Dr. Faiwiszewski also emphasizes the importance of self-compassion, and often incorporates practices that focus on and foster self-compassion during her sessions. Consistent with a person-centered view, Dr. Faiwiszewski believes that the client is the expert of their own lives, and helps each client discover their own personal strengths and resources for coping with daily life.
Dr. Faiwiszewski completed her hypnotherapy training with the Florida Society of Clinical Hypnosis (FSCH), where she learned the foundational principles of hypnosis including the neurophysiology of hypnosis, fundamentals of hypnotic communication and suggestions, ego-strengthening techniques, inductions, ideomotor signaling, and reorientation. She incorporates her knowledge of hypnotherapy with her skills in CBT and ACT, such as by aiding cognitive modification, awareness of the present moment, and acceptance, to help clients cope with their symptoms, and to feel empowered to utilize their own resources to live a meaningful life.
Using her background in psychology, fitness, and meditation, Dr. Faiwiszewski approaches treatment in a holistic way. Depending on the client’s goals and concerns, therapy may involve setting goals on mind, body, and spirit, and may address daily functioning such as sleep, physical activity, nutrition, in addition to cognition and emotion. She works collaboratively with each client to create an individualized treatment plan, while incorporating humor and genuineness, to foster a warm and open therapeutic experience.
