Michael A. Scarpa is a Marriage and Family Therapist and Divorce Mediator licensed to practice in New York State and Director of Long Island Anxiety Care.

He received his training in divorce mediation from the Center for Mediation and Training in Manhattan, NY. As a graduate of SUNY Binghamton’s Psycho-Biology Bachelor’s program and Hofstra University’s Marriage and Family Therapy Master’s program, he began his career working in Hofstra University’s Community Health Clinic and for Nassau University Medical Center’s Adult Psychiatric Unit. There he ran various Divorce Support, Parenting Skills, and Family Issues Groups as well as developed a Relationship Skill Building Group.

He also has worked with criminal court systems as part of Queens County’s Alternatives to Street Crime Program, where he helped at risk teenagers and first time offenders develop and improve communication, anger management, and social skills in order to stay out of the legal system, become more productive members of society, and take back their lives.

Mr. Scarpa brings a unique set of skills developed through working in Community Services Centers, In-patient Psychiatric Units, in conjunction with the Court Systems, and most recently within the Private Practice setting. Presently, his main focus is on helping individuals, families, and couples overcome anxiety and anxiety related disorders, such as phobias and OCD, through the use of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Additionally, family and couple communication issues, stress reduction, and other interpersonal dynamic issues are addressed using Cognitive Behavioral and systemic Family Therapy models, including Solution Focused and Structural Family Therapy.

Anxiety is something that impacts everyone differently and causes many people distress. For some, it is often seen as avoidance of people, places, and things; for others (especially with children) it can be seen through their acting out; and yet for others it comes in the form of obsessive thoughts and ritualistic behaviors.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, with its emphasis on education, coping skills training, and rational methods for changing thoughts and behaviors has been shown to be one of, if not, the most effective treatment strategy for dealing with anxiety is all of its many forms. By taking such a goal-oriented, problem focused approach and through the use of Cognitive Behavioral therapy, clients are taught how to view problems differently and address them in productive ways so that by the time therapy is done they can become “their own therapist”.