“Maximizing all that a person can be and helping them make a difference in their life and in the world is a central focus of my work.” Dr. Sheila

Dr. Sheila H. Forman is both a licensed clinical psychologist (license no. PSY 15265) and licensed attorney (license no. 123074). Many of the skills that make a good attorney are the same ones that make Dr. Sheila an excellent psychologist: good listening skills, knowing how to phrase a question in a way that gets a response, the ability to dig deep and find out what’s really underneath the statements that people make. “I strive to make unconscious material conscious so patients become aware of why they are doing what they are doing. This awareness creates a choice in how to think, feel, and behave.”

Although Dr. Sheila does not give legal advice to her patients, her experience and training in the legal world go a long way towards reducing anxiety and giving reassurance and confidence to those dealing with legal matters. Specifically, she addresses issues specific to the practice of law, including burnout, stress management, personal and professional relationships, and career transitions.

Dr. Sheila’s dedication and commitment to the well-being of her patients is evident in the wide range of training she has undertaken. She is trained in both psychodynamic psychotherapy and cognitive-behavior therapy. Psychodynamic psychotherapy, often referred to as “talk therapy” focuses on a person’s unconscious patterns of thought, feeling and behavior. Cognitive-behavior therapy looks at a person’s automatic way of responding to situations and works intentionally with words and actions to create different responses.

In addition she is trained in coaching techniques for therapists and hypnotherapy. She is certified as a group psychotherapist, and a seminar leader, and is one of only three consultants nationwide certified to use the “Psychology of Money” profile. With a wide range of therapeutic techniques at her fingertips, she chooses the one that is best suited to each individual client.

Her education includes degrees from The Johns Hopkins University, Boston University School of Law, and the California Graduate Institute School for Psychology and Psychoanalysis. Dr. Sheila is a former Assistant Professor of Law and Ethics for various graduate school programs in the Los Angeles area and the former Executive Director of the Santa Monica Bar Association.

Dr. Sheila is a member in good standing of many professional organizations: the American Psychological Association, the California Psychology Association, the Los Angeles Psychological Association, the American Group Psychotherapist Association, the California Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology, the National Registry of Group Psychotherapists, American Seminar Leaders’ Association and the Women Lawyers of Los Angeles.

Dr. Sheila is currently in private practice in Santa Monica, California.