Lois Morrison-Keffer, Ph.D.
Phone: 408-356-7141
Education:
Associate of Arts Degree from Greenfield Community College
Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology and Sociology from Clark University
Masters of Public Service in Public Health from Clark University
Doctoral of Philosophy Degree in Clinical Psychology from the California Graduate School of Marital and Family Therapy
Past Work Experience:
Pre-doctoral Intern at Palo Alto Adolescent Servies
Pre-doctoral Intern at PCC Children and Youth Services, Inc, in Palo Alto, CA
Clinical Supervisor at the California Graduate School of Marital and Family Therapy
Post-doctoral Intern at the Santa Clara County Health Department, Los Gatos, CA
Clinical Psychologist at Eastfield Ming Quong Family Clinic
My first love with psychology was discovering the early theorists of humanistic psychology, Maslow, Rogers, Moustakas. I loved the idea of treating the whole person with dignity and respect.
Then I discovered holistic health and went to many training seminars at the Holistic Health Institute in Newton, Massachusetts. I was particularly fascinated with Elizabeth Kubler-Ross' treatment of death with dignity, taking death out from behind closed doors, letting people grieve, helping people to say good-bye.
Then I became interested in systems theory, how family systems work. Some of the early pioneers that shaped my thinking were Virginia Satir, Salvatore Minuchin, Marty Kirschenbaum and Carl Whitaker.
In the early 90's I had the opportunity to do extensive work with Francine Shapiro, Ph.D. when she was beginning to train clinicians in a new techniqe called EMDR, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. This can be a powerful tool to help someone move past a strong, negative, stuck emotion. I use this process when it is clinically indicated.
About 20 years ago I was introduced to something that is fairly commonplace today. That is mindfulness meditation. My early introduction was through the work of the Vietnamese Monk, Thich Nhat Hanh. This type of meditation is a process that anyone can use anywhere, anytime, to help focus in the present and calm down the nervous system.
Over the years I have come to view psychotherapy not as a science, but an art. I believe that therapy relies heavily on the relationship between therapist and client, and whether trust and safety can be built. This is a key element on both sides for the therapy to be successful. Within this framework, different techniques and theories can be applied. The framework of the relationship is crucial.
