The Right Approach for YOU
Child Therapy and Parenting Skills Innovator
Dr. Jay E. Fisher has been in full-time private practice as a clinical psychologist for 41 years, making him the longest-standing psychologist in full-time private practice in the Bakersfield area. He specializes in working with children. He has special expertise in behavior therapy and play therapy with 4 to 10 year olds.
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Dr. Fisher is especially skilled at developing a warm rapport with children at their level of development. Therapy with children takes into account their internal world, their real-world experience, and their strengths, as well as teaching parents effective discipline for negative behavior.
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Some issues in children Dr. Fisher treats:
Behavior problems
Disrespectful
Not completing homework
Easily distracted at school
Refusing chores
Talking back to parents / teachers
Excessive fears
Isolates from others
Performing below grade level​​
Worrying
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Temper tantrums
Cries easily
Suicidal thoughts
Aggression toward siblings
Bullying / Being bullied
Significant drop in grades
Irritability / Anger
Teasing and/or picking on others
Argumentative
Doesn't play with other kids
Talking to your child about suicide
If your child expresses suicidal thoughts, you must get help right away. Ask your child if they have thought about a method -- or how he/she would kill himself/herself. If they have, call 9-8-8 or take them to the nearest emergency room immediately. If not, make an urgent appointment with a therapist!
Dr. Fisher's goal is to bring out the BEST in all of his clients. He utilizes play therapy with younger children in conjunction with traditional "talk" therapy. Your counseling is customized to fit your needs, personality, strengths and issues.​
"What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculties! In form and moving, how express and admirable! In action how like an angel! In apprehension how like a god! The beauty of the world, the paragon of animals!"
- William Shakespeare
Dr. Fisher brings out the best in everyone's unique personality , identity and skillset. People are much greater than the negative symptoms they experience.
About Jay E. Fisher, Ph.D.
Guiding Kids On the Path to Healing
Lic. #: PSY 7979
Dr. Fisher has been in practice as a clinical psychologist in Bakersfield, Calif. since 1983. His education includes a B.A. cum laude and with Distinction in Psychology from the Ohio State University (OSU), a Master's in Education in Counseling from Kent State University and a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology (CSPP).
He was awarded the Phillippe Reed Lawson Memorial Scholarship in Psychology in 1973. In 1974, he was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa, a national honorary society founded in 1776 for high attainments in a broad college curriculum. His post doctorate placement was at Porterville State Hospital, where he learned Applied Behavioral Analysis. In 1986 Jay E. Fisher, Ph.D. presented a paper based on a parenting course that he developed for his doctoral dissertation in San Francisco at the California Psychological Association Convention.
From 2000-2004, he studied contemporary psychoanalytic theories, especially Self Psychology and Robert Stolorow’s Intersubjective Systems Theory, at the Institute for Contemporary Psychoanalysis in Los Angeles, Calif. Dr. Fisher was analyzed by William Coburn, Ph.D., Psy.D., an analysand of Stolorow and major theorist of Complexity Theory and a significant contributor to modern self psychological theory.
Services
Worldwide Presentations on PEP
Dr. Fisher was a keynote speaker at the WYN Psychiatry Forum on August 25, 2022, and spoke on his trademark Positive Esteem Psychotherapy again in March of 2023 at the WYN World Congress in Paris, France.
In 1987, Dr. Fisher has developed a psychotherapy approach for children and adolescents called Positive Esteem Psychotherapy™ (PEP™) (also called Identity Development Therapy). The therapy was originally based on Carl Roger’s Client-Centered Therapy, Applied Behavior Analysis, and creativity and personality theories. It was the foundational therapy for The Specialized Placement Program for Kern County foster kids with severe behavior problems.
Dr. Fisher was the originator of the psychological components, which also included a Foster Parents Parenting Class and a Support Group, and the Consultant from 1987-1991. He has continued to refine Pep™ over the years, and he has incorporated elements of attachment and relational psychoanalytic theories (Intersubjective Systems Theory, Stolorow, and Atwood) into psychotherapy.
Psychotherapy was originally developed for externalizers -- children and adolescents who had behavior problems and were known by their negative behaviors, culminating in a negative identity. PEP™ has been successful with children and teens with ADHD. Success has also been achieved with internalizers -- kids with depression and anxiety (in conjunction with anxiety control and relaxation techniques). PEP™ has been implemented in over 5,000 sessions.
Child & Adolescent Therapy
Dr. Fisher developed a counseling program for kids with moderate to severe behavior problems in 1987 called Identity Psychotherapy. In 1993, he refined the psychotherapy to include kids with behavior problems, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and changed the name to Positive Esteem Psychotherapy™.
Positive Esteem Psychotherapy™ is a strength-based therapy. The program consists of 5-10 individual sessions and 5-10 parenting sessions.
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Goals of Positive Esteem Psychotherapy:
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BUILD A POSITIVE IDENTITY and SELF-ESTEEM
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DECREASE NEGATIVE and AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR
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Dr. Fisher has developed easy-to-apply methods for changing negative behavior.
Parenting Training
Dr. Fisher works closely with parents to develop a discipline approach that works best in decreasing negative behaviors and increasing empathy. Attachment difficulties, i.e. -- the child who is isolating himself/herself or depressed, also need to be addressed in parenting sessions. Some children have unique personalities and/or are very sensitive. Some have experienced trauma. They may need specialized individual treatment as well as parent help in expressing emotions and building self esteem. Strengthening the parent-child bond can also be a feature of treatment.
Dr. Fisher can assist with life's most complex and challenging circumstances. Contact me today and let me help you find the best in yourself and your family.