Anita Schimizzi, PhD

You love your child and want your child to experience joy, to thrive, to connect with others, but something is getting in the way. Perhaps, as a parent, you would like some new techniques for supporting your child and managing family stressors. Or maybe you are working your way through the transition from being a teen living at home to being more independent as you attend college, live on your own for the first time, or confront other challenges. I am Dr. Anita Schimizzi and I offer supportive services to children, teens, young adults, parents, and entire families. If you would like to see if my services may be right for you or your child, please call or email to arrange a free phone consultation. I look forward to speaking with you. A Little About Me I have been a North Carolina Licensed Psychologist since 2003 and I specialize in working with children, adolescents, young adults, and families. My services include individual and family therapy, parent coaching, and specialized services for families affected by separation and divorce. I also provide consultation to treatment teams and schools on behalf of clients. I enjoy working with clients on a variety of topics. While distressing issues, such as ADHD, anxiety, OCD, divorce, depression, social stress, trauma, and troubling behaviors, may have led clients to seek my help, I look at these stressors as parts of a whole person that also experiences and is so much more. Parent involvement is instrumental in the success of a child's treatment and I strive to build relationships with parents wherein they feel empowered to address a wide range of parenting concerns. How to structure the home, better understand and manage difficult behaviors, and improve parent-child relationships are just a few of the topics that can be addressed. No matter what brings you or your child to see me, I will provide a warm, supportive atmosphere to help everyone feel safe to learn, take risks, and grow. I am LGBTQ+ affirming and welcome people from diverse walks of life. I will work with each client to make sure that individual needs are met so the client can get the most out of sessions. Individual strengths, developmental stage, and goals form the backdrop for therapy and a variety of techniques are used to move clients in the direction they wish to go. I teach skills, including mindfulness-based techniques, so clients have real options to practice outside of sessions. I also work to help clients gain understanding into their struggles. I place great value on the therapeutic relationship and focus on a collaborative approach wherein clients and their families are invited to provide ongoing input that shapes treatment and ensures that it remains a useful tool for symptom relief, skill-building, and general well-being. Therapy is designed to not only help in the present, but to be an opportunity to learn things that can serve clients over a lifetime. Education and Training: I completed my Ph.D. in school psychology in 2002 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received clinical training in a variety of settings such as outpatient, residential, and day treatment programs for children and adolescents with varying degrees of emotional, behavioral, and learning challenges. I completed a pre-doctoral APA-approved clinical psychology internship at Crestwood Children's Center in Rochester, NY in 2001. Prior to completing my doctoral program, I earned an M.Ed. in school psychology in 1999. I completed my undergraduate degree in psychology with minors in Spanish and sociology at Indiana University, Bloomington in 1996 and have been a member of the American Psychological Association since 1995. My post-degree training includes completing the North Carolina Parenting Coordinator training in 2009 and follow-up training in the area of families affected by divorce. I have also completed a variety of trainings in cognitive-behavioral therapies, including trauma-focused and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), over the years. Additionally, I completed the full three-part intensive Transforming the Experience-based Brain © training, a somatic therapy that works to bring about regulation to the nervous system and in relationship to others after the experience of early trauma, in 2019. In early 2022, I completed SPACE© (Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions) training, a treatment developed by Eli Lebowitz at the Yale Child Study Center that enlists the supportive actions of parents in helping their children better manage anxiety.