Kalina Brabeck, PhD

Kalina believes that a strong, genuine therapeutic relationship is foundational to effective psychotherapy. She integrates evidence-based interventions within a trauma-informed, social justice framework to support adults (ages 18+) struggling with anxiety, depression, post traumatic stress disorder, complex trauma and attachment issues, and personality challenges. Kalina primarily practices Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and has been trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). Kalina also was recently was trained in Emotionally-Focused Therapy for Couples (EFT-C), which is regarded as the gold standard of evidence-based approaches for couples work. Consistent with all these approaches, Kalina uses a non-patholozing framework and seeks to balance validating the protective function of clients’ behaviors while also supporting them to choose more flexible and more effective patterns of behavior that are in line with their lives worth living. Finally, Kalina is Spanish/English bilingual and has many years of experience working with immigrants from Latin America in English and Spanish. In all her work, she centers cultural humility and addresses cultural and social context. In addition to her work at RI-CBT, Kalina is a tenured professor of Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Rhode Island College.