Kelly Kohler, MA

Kelly Kohler is an PsyD doctoral student specializing in evidence-based treatment for children and adolescents with a broad range of behavioral and emotional disorders. Kelly has experience treating youths with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), anxiety disorders (e.g., social anxiety, generalized anxiety, and separation anxiety), selective mutism, specific phobias, body focused repetitive behaviors (BFRBs), and ADHD using evidenced-based approaches, like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Kelly has specialized training in exposure and response prevention (ERP) through experiences at UCLA Semel’s OCD Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP), where she has worked with patients suffering from severe OCD. Kelly is also trained in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), the evidence-based treatment for children age 2-7 with behavior dysregulation. Additionally, Kelly has experience leading parent process and support groups for families of children with mental illness, where she teaches parenting skills, and mindfulness, and emphasizes the importance of parent wellness.

Kelly received her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in Linguistics and Psychology and minored in French. Before beginning graduate school to study psychology, she worked as a registered behavioral technician providing applied behavioral analysis (ABA) to children ages 2–19 with autism spectrum and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Following this, Kelly began her master’s degree in clinical psychology at Pepperdine University and began to accumulate clinical and research experience at UCLA Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Behavior and at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine. Once she began her PsyD at Pepperdine University, Kelly began to pursue her passion for working with children, teens, and families, which she brings to the WaveMind team!

In her spare time, Kelly enjoys spending time outdoors with her husband and their dog, trying new restaurants with friends, and making pottery!

Kelly practices under Dr. Danielle Cornacchio and Dr. Lindsey Bergman’s supervision.