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ANITA L. AUERBACH, PH.D.
Dr. Anita Auerbach, Founder/Director, established Commonwealth Psychological Associates in 1980. Formerly Chief of Psychological Services at the Northern Virginia Training Center, she is a Diplomate of the International Academy of Behavioral Medicine and the American Board of Medical Psychotherapists.Trained during internship and residency in the inter-disciplinary treatment team approach, with a Ph.D. in Psychology from The George Washington University, Dr. Auerbach wanted to bring aboard a highly-skilled group of clinical psychologists, neuropsychologists, and other allied healthcare specialists, so that patients could access mental health services of varying breadth and depth, all under one roof.Originally conceived to serve the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, the practice has grown beyond to have a national and international referral base. In addition, Commonwealth Psychological Associates serves as a training facility for senior doctoral interns and residents from The George Washington University.
Dr. Auerbach works with adolescent, adult and geriatric patients with problems that interfere with daily living including depression, anxiety, phobia, couples' relationships, marital issues, coping with chronic illness, substance abuse and sports performance enhancement, to name a few. Her philosophy of treatment is "I want each individual to feel they are coming to a place of expertise, and also a place of compassion, so that each patient, at that moment in time, is the only patient."
Dr. Auerbach is Past-President of the Virginia Psychological Association and former Chairman of the VPA Board of Directors. She has been an instructor at several area universities and is presently Clinical Professor of Psychology at The George Washington University and a member of the Clinical Faculty at The George Washington University School of Medicine. Dr. Auerbach is also a board member for the David H. Lawson Foundation and the Virginia Psychological Foundation. She has served as a consultant to community agencies, hospitals, mental health clinics, school systems, courts, group medical practices, athletes, and sports teams. Her work with corporate clients includes some of the metropolitan area corporations named in The Washington Post's Top 200 Companies.
Dr. Auerbach has brought many mental health issues to the public at large, through media appearances on NBC, CBS, and ABC and has assisted the media in the development of television programs and in various print publications such as The Washington Post, Parade, The Fairfax Journal, and Bride magazine. She has given presentations on topics ranging from stress and anger management to effective communication with adolescents, prenuptial agreements, transition to retirement, grief and loss, stress of relocation, and home-based behavioral interventions.
Dr. Auerbach is a member of the American Psychological Association, the Virginia Psychological Association, the Virginia Academy of Clinical Psychologists, the Association for the Advancement of Applied Sports Psychology, and the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, and is also part of the Red Cross Disaster Response Network.
Favorite quotation:
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
-Dr. Margaret Mead
Publications and Presentations...