About Dr. O'Donnell
Dr. O'Donnell has a private practice in the San Francisco Bay Area where she currently sees clients virtually. In addition to her practice, Dr. O'Donnell is a psychologist at Kaiser in Redwood City where she started and leads the Couples and Family Therapy Program and serves as a member of the Dialectical Behavioral Therapy and Trauma Programs. She also supervises psychiatry residents and psychology post-doctoral fellows. Over the years, she has also presented and helped facilitate workshops in various areas including trauma, psychodynamic therapy, and couples/ family therapy.
Dr. O’Donnell has expertise in providing psychotherapy to individuals with a diversity of concerns including relationship distress, managing life transitions, explorations of identity, and sexual trauma. She views therapy as a collaborative, relational process which is, at times, challenging, meaningful, and deep and at other times is full of play and humor. She takes a developmental perspective, which brings an individual’s history into their present concerns. She focuses on understanding the whole authentic person, as she supports clients in alleviating their distress and recognizing their strengths. In addition, she joins with individuals and couples to both recognize and break patterns that are no longer serving them.
Dr. O’Donnell uses a range of treatments for individual and couples therapy that have been empirically proven to be effective in both reducing distress and improving relationships. While Dr. O’Donnell has experience working across the lifespan, she is taking on exclusively adult clients at this time. Her particular areas of specialization are couples therapy and the treatment of trauma. Dr. O'Donnell also values inclusivity, and strives to provide a safe space for individuals from a diversity of identities and backgrounds (e.g., gender expression, sexuality, race, ethnocultural background, socioeconomic status, ability status, religious faith). Across identities, she works to help individuals feel seen, understood, and supported with individualized care.
Training
Dr. O'Donnell has a Master’s degree from Oxford University in Psychological Research and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Rutgers Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP). She has held clinical training positions at Mount Sinai Beth Israel in New York City, Newark Beth Israel, NYU Langone Military Family Clinic, Rutgers Counseling, Brooklyn VA, GSAPP Center for Psychological Service, and Center for Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis. Dr. O’Donnell has also completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Veterans Administration - Palo Alto Healthcare System, where she continued her specialization in providing treatment for trauma, relationship distress, and sexual functioning to individuals, couples, and families in inpatient and outpatient settings.
Education
RUTGERS UNIVERSITY, Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology (GSAPP)
Psy.D. Clinical Psychology
Psy.M. Clinical Psychology
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UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
M.Sc. Psychological Research
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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES (UCLA)
B.A. Psychology (Major) & Human Complex Systems (Minor)