I have a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Oregon, and I am nationally board certified by the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP). I have been licensed to practice in California since 1973 (License No. PSY 3987). I am listed with the National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology.

I have completed training in clinical hypnosis, and I am an Approved Consultant certified by the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis. In 2003 I was awarded the Milton H. Erickson Award for Scientific Excellence in Writing on Clinical Hypnosis. In 2008, I received the Roy M. Dorcus Award for Best Clinical Paper from the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. I am a Fellow of both the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis and the Society for Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. I have been president of the San Francisco Academy of Hypnosis and president of the San Francisco Psychological Association. I also belong to the California Psychological Association and the American Psychological Association.

I have completed Level II training in EMDR and belong to the international association (EMDRIA). I also am a member of the International Association for the Study of Dreams (IASD).

Over the past 20 years, I have published articles in professional journals and I have presented papers at national and international conferences devoted to hypnosis and psychotherapy. My book, "Inner Strengths: Contemporary Psychotherapy and Hypnosis for Ego Strengthening", co-authored with Claire Frederick, M.D., is available at www.Amazon.com. My three hypnosis CD's on the subjects of developing core inner strength, overcoming performance anxiety, and mastering test taking, are available at www.hypnosisnetwork.com.

I continue to practice psychotherapy in my offices in San Francisco and Berkeley, California.

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The Reason I Became A Helping Professional

I learned when I was quite young that people seemed to want to tell me their secrets and trust me with intimate details of their life. I have always been interested and curious as to why people feel the way they do, and have wanted to listen carefully and understand. I feel honored to be trusted in this way, and so have educated and trained myself to become the best psychotherapist that I could be. I believe that my mission in this life is to help others to fulfill their own potential and to achieve happiness and satisfaction in their lives.

I have also always been interested in different states of consciousness such as what happens during dreaming and how to use our dreams to better understand ourselves. Hypnosis is another state of consciousness that can be a powerful resource for empowerment and self-improvement. So I am now in the process of creating self-hypnosis recordings that can be available to anyone for help in dealing with their own issues.

My approach to psychotherapy is integrative and relational, that is I adapt my approach to the needs of the unique individual. I have been trained in a number of theoretical orientations including psychodynamic and cognitive-behavioral methods, so I employ what feels most appropriate for the person involved. When there has been trauma, I find EMDR and clinical hypnosis to be very helpful. When there is a specific issue, sometimes only a few sessions of hypnotherapy are needed. In general, I believe that I can help people to know who they are, learn to accept who they are, strengthen their own inner and outer resources and relationships, and move in the direction of satisfying their goals.

Dr. Shirley McNeal

Additional Details

I am:

Taken

Sexual orientation:

Heterosexual

Religious affiliation:

Spiritual, but no affiliation

Have children:

No

Dr. Shirley McNeal

Payment Options

Accepts Credit Cards:

No

Accepts Insurance:

No

Accepts Paypal:

Yes

Sliding Scale:

Yes

Fee Range:

Determined case-by-case, please inquire