Business Details
42 Years
experience
Trusted Psychologist for Individual & Couples Therapy
Robert Shafer, PhD has dedicated over four decades to providing compassionate psychotherapy to individuals and couples in Santa Barbara and Montecito. Holding a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Cambridge Graduate School of Psychology and licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist in California (MFC 19148), he combines psychodynamic theory with practical interventions to address emotional distress, relationship challenges, and behavioral addictions. His practice emphasizes empathic understanding, fostering secure connections, and empowering clients to resolve inner conflicts rooted in early experiences. With a career spanning 40 years, including teaching and supervising therapists, Dr.Shafer brings depth of expertise to treating depression, anxiety, co-dependency, and trauma. His approach prioritizes personalized care, blending psychoanalysis, cognitive-behavioral techniques, and coaching to help clients achieve meaningful growth. Recognized for his nonjudgmental demeanor and ability to create safe therapeutic spaces, he supports clients in redefining their narratives and building healthier relationships. The practice accommodates diverse needs through sliding-scale fees and flexible scheduling, serving as a trusted resource for mental health in the community.
Services
Individual Counseling
Couples Therapy
Psychoanalysis
Addiction Treatment
Co-Dependency Counseling
Details
- Year established: 1984
Highlights and features
- We offer over 40 years of experience in psychodynamic psychotherapy.
- Our therapist holds a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Cambridge Graduate School.
- We specialize in resolving complex emotional and relationship challenges.
- Our practice accepts sliding-scale fees for accessible care.
- We provide personalized treatment grounded in empathic understanding.
What people say
True healer
Changed my life
Gentle yet effective
Secure therapeutic space
Deep understanding
Services
Individual Counseling
Dr. Shafer provides tailored psychotherapy for adults addressing depression, anxiety, trauma, and self-esteem challenges. Using psychodynamic techniques, he helps clients explore early experiences shaping current behaviors while developing practical strategies for emotional growth. With over 40 years of clinical experience, sessions focus on resolving inner conflicts and fostering authentic self-expression through empathic dialogue.
Couples Therapy
This service addresses communication breakdowns and emotional disconnection in relationships through structured therapy sessions. Dr. Shafer employs empathic listening techniques to help partners understand each other's perspectives while rebuilding trust and intimacy. Specializing in both heterosexual and same-sex relationships, the practice addresses co-dependency patterns, conflict resolution, and re-establishing secure emotional connections in a supportive therapeutic environment.
Psychoanalysis
Utilizing contemporary psychoanalytic methods, this long-term treatment explores unconscious patterns affecting behavior and relationships. Dr. Shafer guides clients through intensive self-exploration of childhood experiences and attachment patterns using interactive dialogue rather than traditional Freudian techniques. The process aims to transform deeply ingrained emotional wounds into opportunities for personal growth and improved relational functioning.
Addiction Treatment
Specialized therapy addresses substance abuse and behavioral addictions like gambling, pornography, and internet dependency through psychodynamic frameworks. Treatment focuses on understanding root causes of addictive patterns while developing healthier coping mechanisms. The practice addresses both the addictive behavior itself and underlying emotional distress contributing to compulsive cycles of self-destructive actions.
Co-Dependency Counseling
Targeted therapy for individuals trapped in unhealthy relational patterns helps break cycles of emotional dependency. Sessions explore origins of codependent behaviors in dysfunctional family systems while establishing healthier boundaries. The practice addresses enabling behaviors, low self-worth, and fear of abandonment through structured interventions that promote self-awareness and independent emotional regulation.
People
Robert Shafer, PhD
Psychotherapist
Robert Shafer, PhD, a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 40 years of experience, specializes in psychodynamic psychotherapy for individuals and couples. He earned his PhD from Cambridge Graduate School of Psychology and has trained interns at the graduate level. His practice focuses on empathic understanding and resolving emotional conflicts rooted in early life experiences.
Questions
What therapeutic approaches do you use?
I integrate psychodynamic theory with cognitive-behavioral techniques and coaching, tailoring interventions to each client's unique needs while emphasizing empathic understanding.
Do you accept insurance?
While I am not an in-network provider, many insurance plans offer partial coverage for out-of-network mental health services.
What are your session fees?
Standard sessions cost $200–250 with sliding-scale options available based on financial need.
How long are therapy sessions?
Individual sessions typically last 50 minutes, with extended sessions available for intensive psychoanalysis work.
Do you offer evening or weekend appointments?
Yes, I offer Saturday sessions from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM in addition to weekday hours.
What mental health issues do you treat?
I specialize in treating anxiety, depression, relationship issues, behavioral addictions, and trauma using evidence-based therapeutic approaches.
