A Clinical Psychology practice

About

We serve both the New York, NY, and Columbus, OH areas. We offer telehealth for both areas, and limited in-person appointments for Columbus at this time.

In an effort to gain experience with a wide variety of patients from children to the elderly, I have worked in a vast array of settings. I have worked on the inpatient psychiatric units and the emergency department at St. Barnabas Hospital in the Bronx. In this type of setting I worked with acutely ill patients in need of hospitalization following suicide attempts, psychotic episodes and other severe emotional and behavioral problems. My work with outpatients at New York Behavioral Health has offered me the opportunity to help many people on an individual basis or in a group setting, with family therapy or with couples sessions. Helping people on an outpatient basis proves challenging and fascinating as patients have astounded me with their ability to improve their lives despite many stressors and emotional hurdles they may face. My work at Bensonhurst Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing has allowed me to work with elderly patients facing the end of their lives as well as patients who are recovering from traumatic injuries. I have truly enjoyed having my own practice where I am able to do more long term therapy with my patients. I have also been able to work with other wonderful therapists who have deeply enriched my work and personal life.

To get an idea of what a session feels like… I will encourage my patient to discuss, as openly as possible, what brings her or him to treatment. I will use various exercises, worksheets or simple dialogue to help each patient figure out the answers he or she is searching for.  Additionally, I might give “homework assignments” to encourage the patient to practice skills learned in session.  I only utilize techniques that have known empirical evidence to support their efficacy.

I will create a treatment plan after our initial intake assessment that will be specifically tailored to fit your needs. Most psychotherapy works best when patients can come on a weekly basis for 50 minute sessions, however this is not feasible for all patients. I will work with you to help you figure out what will fit into your hectic schedule but also be efficacious.

I have been involved in several research studies at Bellevue investigating the many facets of psychotic disorders.  I previously have worked at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center/The New York State Psychiatric Institute on several studies investigating suicidality, Major Depressive Disorder, and Bipolar Disorder. More recent research I have been involved in has investigated the prodromal syndrome of Schizophrenia, which was conducted from Cornell University medical center. This fascinating study is teaching Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) skills to adolescents who present with symptoms of prodromal schizophrenia (precursors to schizophrenia) and a family member. The idea is that these skills are then reinforced at home to help prevent the onset of a full-blown psychotic episode. Results are still being evaluated, but we are optimistic! I have presented research at psychiatry and psychology conferences, both local and international.

PRESENTATIONS

Sheets, M., Landa, Y., D’Antonio, E., & Serper, M. (2010, May). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to Reduce the Distress of Delusions. Presented as part of a symposium at the Association for Behavior Analysis International Annual Conference, San Antonio, TX.

Sheets, M., Landa, Y., Serper, M. (2007, May). Cognitive-Behavioral versus Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Delusions. Presented at the Fifteenth Congress of the World Association of Dynamic Psychiatry, St. Petersburg, Russia.

Berman, B., Duffy, K., Sheets, M., Stevens, L., Koch, J., & Serper, M. (2005, November). Beliefs about Voices and Treatment Compliance on the Psychiatric Inpatient Service. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Association for Behavior and Cognitive Therapy, Washington, D.C.

Sheets, M., Serper, M., Duffy, K., Goldberg, B., & Richarme, D. (2004, November). Gender Differences in Aggressive Behavior on the Inpatient Psychiatric Service. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, New Orleans, LA.

Duffy, K., Goldberg, B. R., Sheets, M., Chou, J., Cancro, R., & Serper, M. (2003, September). Predictors of Violence on the Psychiatric Inpatient Service. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of New York University Medical Center.

Sheets, M., & Mark, L. (2000, April). Dynamics of Critical Boundaries in Visually Guided Reaching. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Miami University Psychology Department.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Paranoia: A Pilot Randomized Controlled clinical Trail and fMRI Investigation of Systems-Level Brain Circuit Modulation. Landa, Y., Chadwick, P., Stern, E., Pan, H., Alexeenko, L., Zhu, Y., Chen, H., Sheets, M., Beck, A. T., Silbersweig, D.A. Society of Biological Psychiatry 67th Annual Scientific Convention. Philadelphia, PA, May 3rd, 2012

PUBLICATIONS

Sheets, M. (2009). Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to Reduce the Distress of Delusional Beliefs. (Doctoral Dissertation). Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY.

Goldberg, B. R., Serper, M. R., Sheets, M., Beech, D., Dill, C., Duffy, K. G. (2007). Predictors of aggression on the psychiatric inpatient service: Self-esteem, narcissism, and theory of mind deficits. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease,195, 436-442.

PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

American Psychological Association

Association for Contextual Behavioral Science

For a free phone consultation or to book an appointment, please contact me.