Credentials:

• • Years in Practice: 40 Years
    • Avg Cost (per session): $200-250
    • Sliding Scale: Yes
    • Accepts Insurance: Not an in-network provider, but many plans will partially cover costs
    • Graduate School: Cambridge Graduate School of Psychology, Ph.D.
    • Year Graduated: 1984
    • License: California MFC 19148

Psychodynamic Psychotherapy Counselor, Robert Shafer, PhD.

After a long and transformative psychoanalysis of his own, Robert Shafer, PhD. decided to leave his business life in favor of pursuing in-depth knowledge and state of the art training in psychodynamic psychotherapy.  He received his PhD in clinical psychology from the Cambridge Graduate School of Psychology in Los Angeles and then went on to advanced training at the Institute for Contemporary Psychoanalysis in Los Angeles.  Concurrently, Dr. Robert Shafer trained interns and taught therapists at the graduate level here in Santa Barbara for more than ten years and is now a practicing psychodynamic psychotherapy counselor.

As this brief summary suggests, Dr. Robert Shafer’s extensive training and experience go way beyond what is required for licensure as a Marriage and Family therapist.   Reflecting his many years of clinical work and as a counselor, Dr. Robert Shafer brings great depth of understanding to each person and situation, and incorporates this wise understanding into a very practical approach to working with life’s challenges and problems.

Dr. Robert Shafer describes himself as very user-friendly counselor.  He enjoys the reputation of being very human and down to earth in his approach to psychodynamic psychotherapy.

Dr. Shafer works with individuals of all ages from late adolescence onwards in the Santa Barbara area.  He specializes in psychodynamic psychotherapy with a focus on understanding early attachment and development.   He works with a large variety of presenting problems:  emotional difficulties such as anxiety and depression, relationship  issues, as well as behavioral patterns involving addiction.

At the present time, Dr. Shafer maintains a private practice at his lovely home office in Montecito, adjacent to Coast Village Road near Santa Barbara.    The comfortable ambiance of the office reflects Dr. Shafer’s love of beautiful art, creating an invitation to engage in a relaxed, conversational approach to solving your problems.