New Seasons Recovery

NewSeasonsRecovery.com is now a resource for addiction, treatment, and recovery tips and information.

If you are looking for information from the previous site, the below content may assist you:

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All of New Seasons Recovery staff are highly motivated, professional and compassionate towards those battling addictions and psychological issues. We are proud to include on our team some of the most experienced and dynamic specialists available, each an expert in his or her specialty. Furthermore, many of our staff themselves have personal experience with recovery, adding immeasurably to their level of understanding.

Some of the primary professionals on staff include:

• Psychiatrist
• Licensed Nurse
• Registered Dietitian
• Addictionologist
• Licensed and specialty therapists
• Counselors/case managers specializing in addiction and psychological treatment
• Recreation personnel

Other professionals involved in your healing process may include your personal physician or therapist as well as other specialists, depending on your personal needs and desires.

Key staff members at New Seasons Recovery include:

Steven M. Orenstein, MA, LMFT – Chief Executive Officer
Mr. Orenstein served as Director of Addiction Medicine Services at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills, where he developed effective and cutting edge dual diagnosis and chemical dependency treatment programs. He has over 20 years of experience as a psychotherapist and administrator, specializing in dual diagnosis. He has successfully operated large facilities that provide programming for treatment-resistant adults and adolescents. Mr. Orenstein has been affiliated with numerous hospitals, residential care facilities, and psychiatric medical service organizations; is a licensed clinician of over 20 years; and has designed chemical dependency treatment programs that have become a model of quality care for the Southern California managed care marketplace. Mr. Orenstein was also co-creator of Behavioral Health Resources, a national management and consulting company devoted exclusively to behavioral healthcare operations.

Carla Bressel, PhD – Clinical Director
Dr. Bressel, a Licensed Clinical Psychologist, is the Clinical Director of New Seasons and oversees our residential, transitional living and outpatient programs. Dr. Bressel earned her Bachelors and Masters Degrees in Psychology from California State University, Northridge, completing both with Honors and Distinction. Her doctorate was completed at the California School of Professional Psychology, Los Angeles, accredited by the American Psychological Association. Dr. Bressel has worked with the behavioral, social, academic and emotional problems of children, adolescents, adults and families. She is skilled in individual, group and couples therapy. Dr. Bressel has gained experience working at the following: Eisner Pediatric & Family Medical Center, California State University Psychology Clinic, California State University Adult Learning Disabilities Center, and California State University Child Learning Disabilities Center. Dr. Bressel completed a Post Doctoral Fellowship at Tarzana Treatment Center, where she received training in the treatment of substance abuse and chemical dependency. As a Post Doctoral Fellow, Dr. Bressel supervised and provided training for doctoral level students. Dr. Bressel is a distinguished member of both the Phi Kappa National Honor Society and Psi Chi National Honor Society. She is the recipient of the Robert Rainey Award for Excellence in Clinical Psychology.

Karen Hylen, PhD – Therapist
Dr. Hylen joined the staff of New Seasons as a therapist and facilitator of the Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) skills training program. Karen earned her doctorate degree in Clinical Psychology, with a Depth Psychology emphasis, from Pacifica Graduate Institute. Her internship training was focused on working with persons diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, giving her a healthy respect for the significant role trauma can play in the cause and exacerbation of both mental illness and substance abuse. Karen has over 12 years of experience providing comprehensive therapy to individuals in recovery from symptoms of addiction and mental illness. Prior to moving to California from the East Coast, Karen was the founder and director of a holistic growth center in the Philadelphia area, which provided psycho-educational and spiritually oriented programming. Weaving together these experiences, Karen brings a holistic perspective to her therapeutic approach. Her compassionate and insightful nature creates a validating environment that conveys acceptance, while aligning with her clients in working toward self-identified qualitative change through accessing the inner wisdom of their deeper, more centered self. She feels passionate about the effectiveness of DBT skills training in helping individuals struggling in the area of interpersonal effectiveness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and most especially, of being mindful of what is motivating their behavior at any given moment. She brings an infectious enthusiasm to her teaching of these vital life skills and their importance to the recovery process.

Lisa Powell, PhD – Family Therapist
Dr. Lisa Powell facilitates New Seasons’ family treatment program. Dr. Powell received her Ph.D. in family psychology, focusing on how addiction affects the family. She has worked in the addiction field for over 10 years in both New York City and Los Angeles. Dr. Powell is a Certified Addiction Counselor, Level II, in the State of California as well as a Certified Alcohol and Substance Abuse Counselor in New York State. Further, she has been certified in Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT) through the University of Miami’s Family Studies Program. BSFT is a family intervention specifically designed to assist families dealing with addiction. Dr. Powell has seen tremendous success with couples and families in both her private practice as well as within a treatment program environment where she has applied BSFT.

Perie Longo, PhD, MFT – Registered Poetry Therapist
Dr. Longo has joined the staff of New Seasons to facilitate a poetry therapy group and a Grief and Loss group. Perie is the president of the National Association for Poetry Therapy, with whom she has been active for several years. Their mission is to promote growth and healing through literature, symbol and story. She is a mentor/supervisor for those training to become certified and registered poetry therapists. For several years she has directed poetry therapy programs and has run poetry therapy groups for treatment centers in the Santa Barbara area. In private practice as a Marriage Family Therapist, she likes to use poetry and other literature as a springboard to access unconscious material, facilitate change and get to understand the self better. Perie has also been an instructor at UCLA, Santa Barbara City College, and Antioch University in Santa Barbara teaching speech and communication and poetry therapy, as well as teaching poetry through the California-Poets-in-the-Schools program. She is on the staff of the Santa Barbara Writers Conference for twenty years and has published two books of poetry, with a third coming out in December. She has written several articles on the benefits of Poetry Therapy, most recently published in The Therapist, the magazine for the California Association for Marriage and Family Therapists, and The Journal of Poetry Therapy. Last November she was invited to speak on Poetry as a Vehicle for Healing at the invitation of the University of Kuwait. She is delighted to work with the clients at New Seasons.

Michael Judd – Neurocognitive Rehabilitation Counselor
Mr. Judd joined the New Seasons team with five years experience in the behavioral health field, including direct care and case supervision with a variety of individuals and disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, PTSD, anxiety disorders, depression, pervasive developmental disorders such as autism and Asperger’s syndrome, and drug and alcohol abuse. Mike is currently completing a Masters Degree in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Psychological Testing and Evaluation. His goal is to earn a Ph.D. with a specialty in neuropsychological testing. His research experience includes study of addictive behaviors and personality types, sensation seeking, and neuropsychology.

Linda Stephens, RD, MFT – Dietitian

Devo Brown – Recreation Coordinator/Personal Trainer
Devo brings a wealth of physical fitness expertise to New Seasons. As the fitness instructor, he shares with our clients his experience training world-class athletes and former Olympians from a multitude of disciplines. Devo conducts both individual and group training sessions on a variety of exercise regimens including bodybuilding, aerobic conditioning as well as advanced cycling and running techniques. Additionally, Devo has earned nutrition certification from the American Athletics and Fitness Council. He helps New Seasons clients relieve anxiety through an innovative approach to nutrition.
Since his sobriety date, October 18, 1987, he has gained a new lease on life and is actively involved in the recovery community. His vitality and enthusiasm for life is undeniably contagious. “After assessing the goals of each of our clients, I work with them to develop a fitness and nutritional plan that meets their individual needs. I am honored to have the opportunity to work in this environment, with this team, and with our clients. What a truly incredible life this is!”

Don Satterfield – Alumni Group Leader

Nathan Kaehler – Acupuncturist

Scott Ackerman, MSW – Director of Admissions
The first segment of Scott Ackerman’s professional training began on the east coast where he earned his graduate degree in social work while working as a civil servant for many years with the Crisis Intervention office in Pennsylvania. After obtaining licensure, Mr. Ackerman practiced social work for a variety of organizations specializing in mental health treatment with selective populations, specifically the dually diagnosed. In the 1990′s Mr. Ackerman was hired by a large hospital to start up and develop an emergency psychiatric service to assess and treat people who presented in Emergency Rooms with an urgent need for care. This service quickly became very successful and in great demand not only locally but nationwide as hospitals were recognizing increasing needs to process psychiatric emergencies in the ER environment. Familial demands eventually required relocation to California where Mr. Ackerman then worked as Clinical Director of a private psychiatric center in Santa Barbara for the next seven years. He subsequently advanced his skills running programs and addressing and treating the multiple needs of the dual diagnosis population utilizing an assortment of individual as well as group formats. As New Seasons’ Director of Admissions, Mr. Ackerman is incorporating his many years of experience, education and training to promote our exceptional treatment program and to enlighten the public and private sector on the many features and benefits the program has to offer.

Valerie Wayne, MA – Intake Counselor
Ms. Wayne holds a Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology from Pepperdine University. Valerie has worked as an Intake Counselor Coordinator for John Bradshaw, noted author on dual diagnosis/co-dependency issues, at his treatment center located in Rosemead, California. Ms. Wayne’s former positions have included working for an eating disorder clinic as well as Vista Del Mar psychiatric hospital, conducting intake interviews and psychosocial assessments for their adolescent, geriatric and chemical dependency units. She finds it “extremely fulfilling” to work with people who are seeking information to enter treatment.

William Oswald – Business Development

Gregg Thomas – Community Relations

Paduvilan Narayan, MD – Addictionologist/Internist

Robert Waldman, MD – Addictionologist
Dr. Robert Waldman was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he graduated from the acclaimed Central High School. He then attended Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania, achieving cum laude distinction upon graduation. Dr. Waldman returned to Philadelphia for medical school at Hahnemann University where he also served his internship and residency in Internal Medicine. Attracted to the challenges and science of Nephrology, Dr. Waldman served a fellowship under Dr. Robert Narins at Temple University, also in Philadelphia. In 1983, he relocated to Los Angeles where he developed a private practice in Nephrology and Internal Medicine. He is currently the Medical Director of RSG Inglewood, a local dialysis facility. Dr. Waldman had a strong academic interest in critical care medicine and served as medical director of critical care at Daniel Freeman Marina Hospital from January of 1994 to January of 1997. In 1988, Dr. Waldman was introduced to Addiction Medicine by Dr. David Murphy, and his interest and scientific curiosity were aroused. He has been actively practicing Addiction Medicine since. He was appointed co-Medical Director of the Recovery Unit at Daniel Freeman Marina Hospital in June of 1999 and served in that capacity until the closure of that unit in July of 2002.

Aref Bhuiya, MD – Addictionologist

Sabira Saifuddin, MD – Psychiatrist

Rod Amiri, MD – Psychiatrist

Bethany Tucker, MD – Psychiatrist

Max Schneider, MD – Consultant
Dr. Schneider is Director of Education, Positive Action Center at Chapman Medical Center; Director of Addiction Medicine Affairs at CNS Response; and a Fellow and past president of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM). Educated at the University of Buffalo School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School, he has been active in the field of addiction medicine since 1953 and currently serves as a Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior (Addiction Medicine) at the University of California at Irvine College of Medicine. He has produced ten films and five booklets on addiction; authored over 60 papers; and has lectured in 49 states, three Canadian provinces and six countries.

Dr. Curtis Cripe, PhD
Curtis Cripe holds a Ph.D. in Research Psychology with emphasis in Neuropsychology, Neurodevelopment and Psychophysiology as well as a Masters Degree in Aerospace Engineering. He is board certified in Neurodevelopment, Neurotherapy and a Diplomate in Peak Performance. Due to his early professional years as a top aerospace engineer for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Dr. Cripe understands the need for precision and gained an appreciation for concrete, scientifically-based (objective) measures. As a leader in the field of Neurocognitive Development, Curtis Cripe has worked over the past 25 years to study brain function and the methods by which individuals may overcome limitations to reaching full brain potential. He continues to search for new options that will help under served populations: kids and adults with special needs. Curtis Cripe is Director and Founder of Crossroads Institute, Centers and Clinic with eight locations in Arizona, Texas, Florida, Maryland, and California. He has published three scientific articles and has contributed to one chapter in a published book on Neurotherapy.

Juri D. Kropotov, PhD
Professor Kropotov is currently the Director of Laboratory for Neurobiology of Action Programming, Institute of the Human Brain of Russian Academy of Sciences and a Professor at the Institute of Psychology, Norwegian University for Science and Technology. Leading research teams for the department of Neuroinformatics, Juri has earned the Russian highest Medal of Honor for his scientific discoveries in the field of understanding neurophysiological mechanisms. He is credited for understanding that the Basal Ganglia system mediates consciousness (system involved with addictions, attention, learning, OCD, Parkinson, decision processes). He has authored over 225 scientific articles and 11 books on understanding how the brain and its underlying mechanisms function. Juri’s need for scientific precision in analyzing how the brain works has led to both the development and acceptance worldwide for his mathematical model of how the visual systems in the brain function. His analytical software, which was developed by his team, is considered one of the most sophisticated and accurate in the field of qEEG.

Jay Gunkelman
Jay Gunkelman holds a Bachelors Degree in Psychology and is a registered Electroneurodiagnostic Techonologist. Jay is considered one of the world’s leaders in the field of neurometric anlaysis (qEEG brain map reading). He is the co-founder of the biofeedback laboratory at North Dakota State Hospital and past President of the Society for Neuronal Regulation. Jay’s 30+ years experience reading both raw and qEEG brain maps has given him an opportunity to gain first hand insightful experience that very few in the field can boast. He has authored eight scientific journal articles. Presently, Jay is also on the lecture circuit teaching other health care and medical professionals how to effectively read the qEEGs to get meaningful results from the data.

Linda Stephens, M.S., R.D., M.F.T. – Nutritionist, Therapist
Linda wears two hats at New Seasons: Registered Dietitian (Nutritionist) and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. She has master’s degrees in both institution management and marital and family therapy. She has experience in organizations from acute care hospitals to chemical dependency treatment and eating disorder treatment facilities, in long term care institutions for various populations and clinics. She oversees dietary services and plans menus that are varied and interesting, prepared with fresh, natural foods keyed to the seasons. She provides staff training and oversight to ensure that the best safety and sanitation practices are followed in meal preparation and service. She also conducts nutrition assessments of clients and offers nutrition counseling individually and in formal nutrition education groups. As a licensed marriage and family therapist, Linda provides psychosocial assessments and psychotherapy to individual clients and participates in treatment planning for all clients with other professional staff members. With both nutrition and therapy skills, Linda works closely with clients who have eating disorder symptoms.