Dr. Christa Suerken is a Licensed Psychologist specializing in individual therapy for adolescents and adults. She has engaged in private clinical practice since 2006 in Minnesota and in the greater metropolitan area of Frankfurt, Germany. Dr. Suerken is interested in helping individuals who have experienced psychological trauma or other mood disorders, and she is an EMDR Certified Therapist.
Dr. Suerken a graduate of the Washington School of Professional Psychology (WSPP) at Argosy University in Seattle, Washington where she attained her doctorate degree in clinical psychology.
Dr. Suerken offers psychotherapy in ENGLISH. Among her areas of expertise are psychotherapy for mood disorders, such as depression, anxiety, or other emotional adjustment problems. Other common issues that Dr. Suerken treats include post-traumatic stress, grief/loss, abuse, addiction, relationship problems, anger management, and self-esteem.
In addition to her diverse clinical experience and training, Dr. Suerken offers psychological evaluation services. Dr. Suerken provided forensic psychological evaluations for courts in Minnesota, such as competency and criminal responsibility evaluations, psychosexual evaluations, and evaluations of juveniles in need of shelter or for those involved in social services court cases. In her clinical practice, she offers psychological evaluations for adolescents and adults for a wide range of referrals, and also for assessment of attention-deficit disorders (ADHD) and learning disorders.
As a psychotherapist, Dr. Suerken uses an interactive style, providing support and practical feedback to help clients effectively address their goals in therapy. Dr. Suerken's orientation or approach to therapy includes cognitive-behavioral and experiential methods. She is also a strong believer in the value of the Adaptive Information Processing (AIP) model, which states that many psychological disturbances are are due to maladaptive encoding or incomplete processing of traumatic or disturbing life events (Shapiro, F., 2001). Dr. Suerken integrates complementary methodologies and techniques to offer a highly personalized approach tailored to the needs of each client. With compassion and understanding but also some challenging, she works with each individual to help them build on their strengths and attain the personal growth they are committed to accomplishing.
*Shapiro, F. (2001). Trauma and adaptive information-processing: EMDR's dynamic and behavioral interface. In M. F. Solomon, R. J. Neborsky, L. McCullough, M. Alpert, F. Shapiro, and D. Malan, David (Eds.), (2001). Short-term therapy for long-term change (pp. 112-129). New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Co.
Education
2004 Psy.D. Clinical Psychology
Washington School of Professional Psychology (WSPP) at Argosy University, Seattle, WA
Licenses
Licensed Psychologist, State of Minnesota LP 4709, licensed since 2006
Approbierte Psychologische Psychotherapeutin, Hessen, Germany, March, 22, 2013
Additional Training/Certification
Eye-Movement Desensitization Reintegration (EMDR) Certified Therapist
Professional Activities and Memberships
American Psychology Association (APA), 2004-2016
EMDR International Association (EMDRiA), since 2013
