Alice Smith, LMFT, has long had an interest in how people make meaning of the experiences in their lives.  she believes that all therapy is child therapy because the inner world we create to cope with life are formed in childhood and infancy.   Alice came to her beliefs in her early work as as a pre-school teacher. That experience observing children stimulated her interest in child development, family dynamics and adolescent psychology.  It led her to study Marriage and Family Therapy at Pacific Oaks College in Pasadena and psychoanalytic psychotherapy at the Psychoanalytic Center of California.

 Alice went on to study and train at Valley Community Counseling Clinic where she learned to work with individuals and families using the deeper techniques of psychodynamic psychology.  She also trained in childhood attachment models where the relationship between parents and children form the foundations of adult satisfaction and fulfillment.  As part of the Thrive Infant Family Program, she observed parents and infants in real life, living normally in their homes. As the observer, Alice was able to facilitate the developing relationship between parents and baby. Teaching people about effective parenting is work she loves to do and she knows it has to start early.

As a woman of color, Alice has a special interest in working with the African American community and other people of color.

Additionally, Alice worked at AIDS Project Los Angeles where she helped the LGBTQ population deal with issues of grief, death and dying.  She is experienced in working with people who suffer with chronic illness.

Alice also had a long career in the theatre as a stage manager and acting teacher working on Broadway as well as prominent regional theater companies.   She is well equipped to work with the specific insecurities of a career in the arts and entertainment.

The most important thing to know about Alice is she seeks to create a warm and trusting partnership with her patients the most important foundation of a good therapeutic outcome.

Education:
Bachelors Degree, Bard College, NY
Masters Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy with a specialization in the African American Family, Pacific Oaks College, Pasadena, CA
Certificate in Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy, Psychoanalytic Center of California
Certificate in Infant Observation, Thrive Infant Family Program. 

Alice is licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences (LMFT118591).